The Other Higurashi Girl
by Augustbird
Summary: Kagome and Kikyou are sisters. Kagome is dating Inuyasha. They really love each other, but what happens when Kagome is gone for just a second, and she comes back to see Kikyo and Inuyasha kissing? Some KikInu, InuKag, SanMir, SesshRin, and AyaKoug
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End

"Has it ever occurred to you once in your pathetic existence I don't give a damn what you think?!" Kagome screamed at her once-boyfriend before stomping away.

A speechless silver-haired hanyou stood in the room the frazzled girl had just exited. "Wait a minute Kags-"

Kagome whipped around, flames of anger burning in her eyes, their fierceness piercing Inuyasha like a sword. "Do not. Address me. So. IN. FORMALLY." Kagome growled through gritted teeth. Didn't he get it?

Inuyasha was confused out of his mind. What the hell was wrong with her?

"Now." Kagome whispered, "If you don't mind, I will be off." She turned, hiding the tears that had managed to pull through and were now streaming down her face. "And don't try to stop me." And before she knew it she was running, racing away from Inuyasha, away from love, away from everything involving pain.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried, racing after her. There was no WAY she'd escape. What did she think he was, brainless? She was CRYING. He hated when she cried, it hurt worse than having an arrow slice his heart. Hell, it WAS having an arrow pierce his heart.

Kagome paused, resisting the urge to turn and race into his arms, fall into his warm embrace that had never failed to heal her emotional wounds. Inuyasha's living room took over a deathly silence. Her legs shook, every part of her body was telling her to turn, to cry into the one she truly loved, to let him kiss her tears away…but then that obnoxious little voice in her head would say a name that made her shudder and want to scream in agony.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome whispered through the salty taste of tears, "Just leave me alone!" and before either of them could change anything, she was gone.

"Yo! Mutt-face!" came a voice that made Inuyasha gag both externally and internally. "What the HELL did you do to my Kagome?" Kouga growled, angry flames spiking his eyes.

"Yo! Mangy wolf!" Inuyasha mocked, "I didn't do nothin'." Then he turned back around to his meal at the restaurant. It had been nearly four days since Kagome and Inuyasha's spat, and neither one of them had healed right.

"She's had the scent of crying on her for three whole days goddamnit!" Kouga growled, moving closer to Inuyasha threateningly.

Inuyasha winced at the sound of that. Kagome was crying? She'd been crying for three days? That wasn't right. He should be there with her…he should be stopping her tears and telling her it was all right…so why the hell wasn't he?

Kagome sighed as her eyes fluttered open. She was lying on her bed. 'That's weird' she thought, 'I don't remember falling asleep.'

She yawned, stretching, and got up to inspect herself. She nearly screamed at the sight she saw in the mirror.

Her normally silky raven locks were splayed out in a scraggled mess, her eyes were red and puffy from extended crying sessions, and her whole face was red and blotchy and just…ugh.

She sighed as she ripped a brush through the snarls and tangles, her mind retracing its steps from the past few days. Fresh tears spilled out of her eyes at the thought.

She couldn't believe what a jerk Inuyasha was. She couldn't believe she'd ever loved him! Thoughts of that night spilled into her mind, making her drop the brush mid-tangle and start bawling. She couldn't help it. She had never thought loving someone could hurt so much…it was awful. The pain was barely endurable. She grabbed multiple tissues from her dresser and cleaned up her face as best as she could. 'Forget Inuyasha' a voice told her, 'He's nothin' but a lying, cheating jerk. You saw what he did with Ki-' "Don't say the name!" she begged out loud.

"Hey Kagome!" a strangely singsong voice poured through the wooden cracks in her door, making Kagome want to cry again.

"What?" she asked, matching a cheery tone as best as she could.

"Mom wants to talk to us, so come on downstairs out of your lair."

Kagome sighed. It was bad enough having someone gorgeous and looking a lot like herself to steal her boyfriend with one kiss…

It was another thing entirely to have it be Kagome's own sister.

Kikyo.


	2. Chapter 2: Izayoi is My Mother

**AN: Hey peeps! Thank you so much for reading my story, tis made me happy! Ahem, anyway, I'm here to clear up a few things (no, none of my reviewers for today technically asked these things, but I'm here to clear it up just in case)**

**There was an indent problem with the first chapter, sorry about that if some of you got confused with what was happening, but hopefully it wasn't too difficult to figure everything out.**

**I have never seen "The Other Boelyn Girl" (if that's how you even spell it…) so I have no idea if anything in my story has anything to do with the plotline of that…so…yeah!**

**I was so happy I got reviews on my first story, they inspired me to write the second chapter on the same day! **

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but the plotline and maybe made-up charries in the future.**

Kagome sighed as she made her way down the winding staircase. She didn't want to think about what had happened, she didn't want to think about the traitorous being that was her ex-boyfriend, or the fact that the reason he was traitorous was waltzing casually down the stairs in front of her. Hell, she didn't want to think period.

"Kagome! Darling! I haven't seen you in forever!" Kagome winced at the all too familiar voice.

"Um…hello, Izayoi-san." Kagome faked a weak smile. She hoped all traces of crying was gone, but she was totally unsure. She wouldn't be able to stand it if Inuyasha's mother knew her son's ex was just heartbroken over their awful breakup. No, she wouldn't allow that.

"Izayoi came over to talk to Mother and wanted to see you too." Kikyou explained gently, a little too gently for Kagome's liking. Was it just her, or did her sister's smile have a hint of a smug smirk?

"Oh…that's…wonderful!" Kagome said cheerfully, not wanting to show Kikyou she was weak. Nope.

Kikyou snickered behind her younger sister's back. She couldn't believe how easy it had been to steal her boyfriend from her. Waaaay too easy. And Inuyasha was all too willing to be involved in that seducing heated kiss of hers.

"Well, I'll leave you two to it then! Nice to see you again, Izayoi!" Kikyou dipped her head respectfully before skipping out of the room.

Kagome tried not to wince at her sister's overfamiliarity with Inuyasha's mother and instead chose to raise an eyebrow skeptically at her sister's explicit cheerfulness. It was really beginning to scare her…

"Now Kagome." Izayoi began when Kikyou was gone. "I hope you know I didn't exactly come over here for a light chat."

Kagome nodded, looking down, feeling tears welling up inside her again, waiting to break loose. She couldn't believe she had any tears left after the hell she had been through the past four days. Kagome took a deep breath and braced herself for whatever lecture she was going to get from Izayoi and hope for the best.

"Mutt-face, if you are the reason my darling's been crying for four days straight, I will rip your intestines through your throat and highly enjoy doing it." Kouga growled at Inuyasha as they walked down the street to Inuyasha's house.

"Kouga, would you shut up already, I'm sick of hearing your pathetic threats every five seconds. I already told you: I have no fucking idea why Kagome's so damn upset, got it? And I'm just as freaked out as you are, so just shut the hell up before I make you." Inuyasha threatened through gritted teeth. Honestly, Kouga hadn't left his side since the confrontation in the restaurant. It was really staring to annoy him, and if that damn wolf didn't shut the hell up soon, he was going to make his sorry ass even sorrier.

Kouga said nothing. Well, really only because he was having some trouble thinking of a good comeback, though he would never admit it out loud. Finally though, he managed to conjour something. "If your so damn upset about it," he snapped, "then why aren't you talking to her about it right now?"

Inuyasha paused, but quickly came back. "Why aren't you?" he retorted, really sick of that damn wolf's voice by then.

"That's easy; I'm here to make sure you don't go do anything else stupid to upset my love when I leave you alone." Kouga explained as though he had just answered 2+2.

"Oh of course, because I need constant watch." Inuyasha said, heavy sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"Well duh." Kouga growled, not catching the sarcasm at all.

"Inuyasha, where have you been?" came a voice that made Inuyasha groan. Great: First he had this mangy wolf to babysit, now his older brother was there to welcome him home.

"Hello, Sesshomaru." Inuyasha offered half-heartedly.

"I take it you don't know where your mother is?" Sesshomaru said, ignoring the greeting.

"What the hell do you mean by that?" Inuyasha growled, tentative now.

"Well, she's certainly not here." Sesshomaru yawned, inspecting an apple in his clawed hand.

"And you know where she is?" Inuyasha sighed. He really didn't have time for this.

"Of course I do. She went over to your girlfriend's place." Sesshomaru explained as if he could care less, digging his thumb into the apple and cutting a perfect circle out.

"SHE WENT TO KAGOME'S?" Both Kouga and Inuyasha froze.

"I was actually going to say Kikyou's. That's your new girlfriend, isn't it?" he had now cut a square and a triangle.

"WHAT?!" Both Kouga and Inuyasha screamed, now both unbelievably upset.

"Well I should go, my cell phone is ringing." Sesshomaru yawned again as he tossed the apple at the dumbstruck and frozen duo.

Kagome froze and her blood turned to ice as she felt warm and gentle arms find their way around her slender form. Of all the things she had been expecting: this wasn't one of them.

"Kagome," Izayoi whispered, "whatever happened between you and Inuyasha, I'll leave it you two to figure it out. My son's been moping about the house for a while, and I knew it could only be because of something that happened with you two. Inuyasha is really happy whenever he comes back from a date with you, or when he just heard your voice pour through the phone line to his ears. He really misses you, Kagome. Now, don't think I'm trying to force you two to get back together, if it wasn't meant to be, it wasn't meant to be, but I think you should try to talk to him. You have no idea how difficult it is for him to go four whole days without hearing your angelic voice and smelling your comforting scent. It's been hard on everyone, I can tell, but I can't fix that. Only you can, Kagome. I've always thought of you as a daughter, and I always will, no matter what the turnout of this may be. I love you, Kagome Higurashi."

Kagome didn't bother stopping the gentle tears that had begun to trickle lightly down her cheeks. She closed her eyes and turned, crying into Izayoi's comforting hold. With her own mother often gone on some kind of trip, it was difficult to just find comfort in her sister, little brother, and grandfather, who watched over them. "Thank you, Izayoi-san. I love you too!" Kagome cried through tears.

"I'm always here for you, dear. Remember that." Izayoi murmured comfortingly.

"Thank you. I will."

Kikyou glared at her sister being Izayoi's favorite. It wasn't fair! She had gone through so much planning to be able to steal Inuyasha's lips that night, and she would make sure she tasted them again and again. She had to. SHE was the one who was meant to be with Inuyasha; not her idiot sister.

Kikyou turned her glare into a grin, then to a smirk. She would win. Just wait.

**Ohohoho, if there's one thing I do know about "The Other Boelyn Girl", it's that the sisters are like rivals. Case in point.**

**I had fun writing this chapter, though the title was slightly hard to come up with, due to the muddled mess that is this chapter. **

**I also apologize for the not amazing descriptions…I don't find this chapter too amazing because of that, I really just threw a bunch of plot together and hoped for it to work, though, like I said, it was fun to write!**

**Thank you to my first three reviewers, who helped me write this chapter with them in mind:**

**Shine like the Star**

**iAweshum**

**AtemsDestinee**

**I do have school and homework and other crap…but, I hope to have chapter 3 up maybe Monday night, at the latest Wednesday night. **

**August over and out!**


	3. Chapter 3: The Call, The Race, The Wish

**AN: *yawn* yo peeps. Sorry, I'm exhausted right now…anyway, I know I told you guys the new chapter wouldn't be up till Wednesday, but I got a review from ****SmurFet****, and reviews inspire me to write, so you can all thank ****SmurFet**** for chapter 3 being up tonight. So, without further ado, I present chapter 3.**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but le plotline, everything else to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi.**

**(Okay, now on with the story!)**

_**CHAPTER 3**_

It took Inuyasha and Kouga about 5 seconds before figuring out what they had to do. 3 seconds later, they were racing side by side to the Higrashi shrine.

"Why are YOU going, mutt-face?" Kouga growled, sending a hard glare in Inuyasha's direction.

"She's MY mother, nitwit." Inuyasha snapped, afraid to discuss anything further. He would never forgive himself if something happened between his mother and Kagome. What if his mother convinced Kagome of something not true? What if, because of this single visit, his every hope of being with Kagome in the future was ruined? No, he couldn't allow it! He…he loved Kagome, no matter what would happen or had happened. He shuddered of the flashback of that night…

_"Has it ever occurred to you once in your pathetic existence I don't give a damn what you think?!"_

_ "Do not. Address me. So. IN. FORMALLY."_

"_Inuyasha…just leave me alone!"_

He inwardly grimaced. What had happened to make Kagome so mad at him? The thoughts hurt. He shook it off and concentrated on not getting hit by passing cars instead. Soon…they would be at Kagome's house. He would make everything right then.

* * *

Kikyou sighed as she exited the house, a bored expression playing on her face. What was it about Kagome that made everyone go after her? She had Inuyasha, that wolf demon…hell, Kagome had hobo going after her.

_Inuyasha…_Kikyou bit her lip to stop it from trembling. No, the past was the past, but the present was the present. Oh yes, she would have him yet. She would make him see the error in his ways of dating her sister. She changed her frown to a rather evil looking grin so fast, it was as though her moment of an emotional breakdown had never occurred. She sighed as a breeze whipped her long, straight, shining pure black locks around her, and she smiled as her eyelids gently closed. Why wasn't every moment in her life like this, a calm, cooling, soothing gentle breeze on a blazing hot day?

* * *

"I can't thank you enough, Izayoi, for encouraging me like that. You wouldn't believe the hell I've been going through." Kagome forced an awkward smile as she set out two mugs with teabags, the water heating in the microwave.

Izayoi smiled gently. "I've said it before, haven't I? You're like a daughter to me…" she tucked a stray strand of silky pure black behind her ear. "You and your sister."

Kagome nearly dropped the measuring cup with the boiling water.

"Careful dear!" Izayoi chuckled as she helped Kagome steady herself. "Are you all right?" she asked, as she sat Kagome down.

Kagome nodded, laughing the thought away. "Yes, I'm fine. Just got dizzy for a moment." _That's not actually too far from the truth…_Kagome thought disdainfully. The news of Kikyou and herself being like daughters to Izayoi and a strange spell of dizziness was almost too much. _Whatever, I'm thinking too much. Yup. That's it. I'm just stressed out…oh Inuyasha…you always knew what to say when I felt like this. I wish you were here now-_

Needless to say, Kagome learned the definition of "Be careful what you wish for" that day.

* * *

Sesshomaru sighed as he answered his phone. "Hello?"

A timid voice answered him. "Um…hi, uh…is this…"

Sesshomaru ignored the thoughts that came into his mind about how adorable the girl on the other end sounded. "Is there a point to you calling me?" he asked robotically. Hell, he answered everything robotically, just more so then to hide the excitement at how unbelievably cute this girl sounded and the fantasies he was thinking up.

"Yes, um…is this…is this Sesshomaru-sama I'm speaking to?" the girl squeaked out his name as if she was afraid of it.

Sesshomaru fought the urge to squeal. Wait, squeal? What the HELL? "Yes, this is Sesshomaru."

"Oh good! My friend often gives me wrong numbers, so I was kinda nervous about this, but I'm so glad I reached you!" the girl blabbered excitedly. Sesshomaru, honestly, could care less about the girl's friend. The girls' friendly voice was almost cuter and more intriguing than her timid, scared voice.

"I see. And you called me because…?" Sesshomaru answered dryly, tossing a glass orb between hands.

"Oh…right! That! Of course! Um…you…you used to attend Fuminenko High, right?" the girl responded.

Sesshomaru twirled the orb like a basketball on one finger. "Fuminenko High? Yes, I went there." As cute as the girl sounded, Sesshomaru was tiring from this conversation.

"Well…you see, I'm taking the same course as you there next year, and um…Sensei recommended I talk to you to get some ahead tips on the course and maybe meet up and-"

"Study?" Sesshomaru guessed.

"Yes! Exactly! That would be so cool! So…um, now that I know I have your number right, I can call you to set up a time or you can call me, or-"

"I'll call you." Sesshomaru responded.

"Okay! Cool! See ya then, Sesshomaru-sama!" the girl squeaked, and hung up.

"Bye." Sesshomaru replied dryly, setting the phone down.

Not that he would admit it to anyone, but he loved the way the girl said his name.

* * *

**Meh, Sesshomaru isn't one of my favorite characters, but I had to get back to his phone ringing sometime, right? Oooh, and I bet you can't guess who the girl on the other line with Sesshomaru-sama was!**

**Inspiration wasn't really there with Inuyasha and Kouga's running scene…but I felt obligated to include them in this chappy. I really enjoyed typing Kikyou's short scene, I have a great idea for later on that will tie my plot into the real Inuyasha plot. Muwahahahahahah!**

**Kagome's scene was okay. I'm debating about how to fill the "dizzy" plothole I created…**

**Sesshomaru's scene was pretty fun to type. I enjoyed making his reactions. :) **

**Thanks guys for reading this, next chapter should be up by Wednesday! **

**August over and out~**


	4. Chapter 4: Wishing

**AN: Hey guys! I got a review…and you know what those thing to do me…but, until I get another review on "My Kag's X-Boyfriend", I'm not updating. Unless I start to feel especially guilty. Which, knowing me, could very well happen. But don't get any ideas! I like, and want, reviews. (And I have a really good idea for the next chapter!!!!)**

**And, on the music note, I listened to "Who's That Girl?" by Hilary Duff (it's the one song I like by her) and I think it really fits the whole story of InuYasha perfectly, ya know? So if there's Kikyou/Kagome ultra angst moments in this chapter, blame that song for infatuating me with ideas. Muwahahahahah. **

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the charries, only the plotline. But you probably already knew that, didn't you?**

* * *

Kikyou blinked open her eyes. "Inu…yasha?" she murmured quietly upon seeing the rather distorted looking hanyou racing up the road with that one wolf whose name she was drawing a blank on. Why was he here? Perhaps he had finally gotten the guts up to try to reconcile with Kagome? Kikyou clenched her fists and tried to fight the urge to scream in pure rage. No. She had done too much work already, she couldn't let it go to waste when the plan was just beginning. She would show Inuyasha that she was the one he was meant to be with, not Kagome.

Her frown of frustration upturned into a grin. Yes. Inuyasha would soon realize his mistake and fall in love with her.

* * *

Inuyasha glared at Kouga once they reached the doorstep. "You. Go." He growled. He really wanted to use this chance of confrontation to make up with Kagome. It had nearly driven him crazy, being without her sweet scent for almost a week. He couldn't stand it. He didn't want to have Kouga ruining what may be his last chance with the girl he loved.

Kouga sent an equally fiery glare Inuyasha's way. "I ain't leavin', mutt, I don't want you doing anything stupid to hurt my Kagome!" he hissed.

Inuyasha's patience snapped upon "My Kagome". "Kagome doesn't belong to anyone, you damn wolf! Besides, she and I share a love that's impossible to break, and if you try anything to destroy it I'll destroy you! So go home right now before I personally kick your sorry ass there myself!"

Kouga smirked. "You wanna change the tense on 'share', mutt?" he sneered.

Inuyasha was ready to really kick the wolf youkai, but a wave of sadness washed over him, the impact of the imaginary force nearly knocking him over. _Kagome!_ His heart screamed. Much as he wanted to pummel Kouga to make himself feel better, he imagined that Kagome wouldn't find it very amusing. He could just see her now…looking at him with those pained eyes.

"Inuyasha?" a gentle voice interrupted his thoughts. His first idea was that Kagome had come outside, but then he realized the difference. This voice had an edge to the gentle innards.

"Kikyou, hi." Inuyasha said, half non-chalantly, as his mind was still filled up with memories of said girl's sister.

"What are you doing here?" Kikyou asked innocently.

Inuyasha nearly froze. Her eyes. They were nearly identical to Kagome's. They looked gentle, mocha brown, always a mixture of emotions swirling in their depths. Inuyasha had to be careful not to fall into them himself. "Oh…uh, my mom's here." Inuyasha finally replied.

Kikyou inwardly cursed. She had been so close…Inuyasha hadn't realized he had been leaning into her. "Ah yes, she's speaking to Kagome." Kikyou explained soothingly.

Inuyasha nodded. "Right."

Kouga narrowed his eyes at the exchange. Was this what had made his Kagome so upset? Was Inuyasha cheating on her with her own sister? _Pathetic half-breed. _Kouga smirked inwardly. This gave Kagome all the more reason to join him.

* * *

Kagome sighed as she lay down on the couch. Her dizziness was worsening-her head was throbbing, the rhythmic pounding blocking out all else in the world. All, except for one certain silver-haired hanyou. _Inuyasha…_Kagome felt tears coming again, but she couldn't stop them. She felt too weak to even lift an arm. Tears were pouring down her face…_Inuyasha…_she felt her heart screaming in agony…_Inuyasha…_images of him were flashing in her mind, one after the other, like a slideshow without a stop button, or edit, or…_INUYASHA!!! _She nearly literally screamed her love's name to the house. Izayoi was sitting not too far away, glancing up at Kagome occasionally. She didn't come over, even at the sight at Kagome's emotional pain. Somehow, Kagome was thankful for that. Somehow, Izayoi knew that Kagome needed to deal with this on her own.

"Kagome?" the last voice she ever wanted to hear echoed from the front hall to her ears.

"Kikyou, you're back in?" Kagome called back, her voice strained and cracked, as though she had aged 50 years in 10 seconds.

"Yes." Her sister replied as she entered the living room. Upon seeing Kagome's painful condition, Kikyou felt her heart go out to her. Hey, just because there was some previous boy trouble, didn't mean the sisters didn't care for each other. "What's happened to you? I was barely gone 15 minutes!" she exclaimed, walking briskly to the couch where her sister lay.

Kagome forced a weak smile. "It's nothing, I'm just having some weird dizzy spell." She shivered when she felt Kikyou's cool hand reach her forehead.

"Just a dizzy spell? Kagome, your forehead is burning!" Kikyou exclaimed.

"She has an ice pack I gave to her." Izayoi explained from the other end of the room. "It's supposed to be on her forehead."

"And why isn't it?" the question was directed more at Kagome than Izayoi, but it was meant for both.

"Good question." Izayoi mumbled, turning the page in her book.

"Here," Kikyou murmured, setting the ice pack on her sister's blazing forehead. "Try to keep it one this time?"

A harsh shudder ripped through Kagome's body at the sudden temperature change upon her forehead. She forced a weak nod.

"Good. You have a visitor, by the way." Kikyou murmured lightly as Inuyasha stepped into the room.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome exclaimed, sitting up at the surprise of the visit. _He's here! He really came! God, how I've missed him!_

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried as he raced to her, reaching her just in time to catch her falling form. "What the hell happened to you?" he murmured at the beautiful figure in his arms.

"I'm fine, just a little dizzy is all." Kagome snapped, angry at everyone's freaking out. She would get over whatever this was soon, everyone just needed to calm down, for goodness' sake.

"Kagome, you're shivering like hell and your forehead is burning. You are more than just a little dizzy." Inuyasha snapped, tracing the outline of her gentle face. Kagome stiffened slightly at this action, trying to hide the immense pleasure this action was causing her. How she had missed the feel of his touch…

Inuyasha leaned in closer to her. _Kagome…you're…I can't believe you're all right. I'm so thankful._

Kagome welcomed his kiss with open arms-er, lips. The feel of his soft, warm lips pressed to hers…how she had longed for this since walking out on him that day.

Kikyou tried not to scream. No. It wasn't fair! Kagome was just going to take him back? Just like that? No…this couldn't be right…this couldn't be happening. She had to stop it somehow! But…how?

Kagome moaned lightly. Oh…this was heavenly…suddenly an image flashed in her mind. Inuyasha…Kikyou…kissing, just like Inuyasha was kissing her now. No…NO! She broke the kiss heatedly. "No, Inuyasha…" she whispered, the confusion and sudden pain in his glare piercing her heart like daggers.

"But, Kagome-" Inuyasha started. He didn't want to fight with her again.

Kagome silenced him, placing her finger over his lips. "You know why we can't." she whispered, not bothering to hide the hurt that spiked her soft tone.

Inuyasha winced. She was bringing that up again. Did he know why? Did he really know why Kagome hadn't talked to him for four days straight?

"Kikyou…" Kagome murmured. It had meant to be a summon, a kind of call, but her voice was barely audible, she was getting weaker.

Kikyou straightened and entered the room. She had half expected to see Inuyasha cradling Kagome, so she was surprised when she was greeted by the exact opposite sight. "Yes, Kagome?" she asked warily.

"Please escort Inuyasha out." Kagome croaked.

Kikyou fought hard to hide her smirk. So, her sister wasn't as naïve as she originally thought.

Inuyasha lowered his head, his bangs hiding his eyes and expression. "Goodbye, Kagome." He whispered, not even acknowledging the reason he came for, who was sitting some feet away, watching the scene with disdainful interest.

"Goodbye, Inuyasha." Kagome whispered, trying desperately to hide the tears coming. She wanted to talk to him, but…until Inuyasha fully realized his mistake, she wasn't going to do anything. Her attempt was in vain though, a single tear trickled down her cheek.

Inuyasha fell weak to the sight of Kagome weak, helpless, and crying, so he leaned over and gently kissed the single tear away. Kagome smiled. Really smiled. Time. That was all the young couple needed, and soon, their relationship would be healed.

* * *

"Inuyasha," Kikyou started as soon as they were out of the house, "Kagome didn't forgive you, did she?"

Inuyasha winced. The words hurt more than he would have guessed. "Keh, she's just being stubborn." He snapped.

Kikyou laughed. "You're so ridiculous." She sighed, shaking her head, "You really don't know why she won't meet your gaze yet, do you?"

Inuyasha froze, looking away, his bangs covering his eyes again. "No." he finally admitted.

Kikyou gave a sly smile. "Maybe I can help you a little bit." She hinted as she whipped him around and had pressed her lips to his in a heated kiss before he knew what was happening.

Inuyasha tensed. Memories flitted across his mind, images of that night when something similar to this had happened, the amazing way it felt when Kikyou kissed him, the way his body seemed to melt when their lips were joined like this. Then, Kagome's hurt, shocked, and confused expression appeared in his mind. He shoved Kikyou away, then turned and ran. What. The. HELL.

* * *

Kikyou smirked as he left. She wasn't exactly happy with him throwing her off like that, but she had somewhat expected it. She sighed as she leaned against a tree, a strong wind nearly blowing her over, though she loved the feel. Yes, it was only a matter of time now before Inuyasha switched to her. Soon, he would see the error of his ways.

Still, she felt bad for her sister. Here she was, stealing her boyfriend behind her back! Still, it was something Kagome had come to deserve.

Kikyou narrowed her eyes. Yes, that's right, Kagome deserved this. Keep that in mind, girl. Don't lose focus like you did back there, you let Kagome come close to forgiving him. If that happened, the whole plan was ruined. And she couldn't have tha happening, now could she? Nope. She needed them to be separate for as long as it took.

* * *

**All right, let me see that show of hands for people who hate me! Yaaaaay! **

**Actually, I bet some of you are wondering, "wait a minute…what happened to Kouga?" Yeah…I finished this chapter and I'm like, "Oh yeah…Kouga…" not to worry though, there'll be plenty of him coming up soon. You know, when I finally add Sango and Ayame in, like I said I would.**

**Anyway, this chapter, did you notice how Kikyou is seeming less and less like a heartless bitch? That's on purpose, it's kind of portraying how I saw Kikyou at first throughout the whole Inuyasha series.**

**And I totally confused the hell out of Inuyasha in this chapter. Go me XD**

**Anyway, next chapter should be up tonight, so I love's ya alls! PLEASE review, because I love hearing what you guys think! (BTW, notice how this chapter is slightly longer? : )**

**august signing out!**


	5. Author's Note

**AN: Yeahahahahah…hi guys. How's it going?**

**I know, I hate chapters that are secretly just AN's, don't worry, you aren't the only ones. I'm sorry guys, life got in the way more than I thought it would…**

**You see, I couldn't update my stories yesterday because I was busy getting anime music I like on my iPod (I now have a bunch of Ranma ½ songs, some InuYasha, a bunch of Shugo Chara, and such…I'm listening to Lambada Ranma as I type ((oh my gosh such an amazing song!!!!!)) and I also adore Ranma no Baka ((it's especially entertaining after listening to "Ballad for Ranma and Akane"…they're all "Akane!" "Ranma!" "AKANE!" "RANMA!!!...NO BAKA!!!!" Oh it's so entertaining.) And yeah…but I'm so glad I did it, today we got to listen to iPods in like, every subject, so that was amazing~**

**And well…**

**You see, one of my best friends ever moved to the Netherlands, and she couldn't take her pet hamster with her, so I received him. It's been…I think, 2 ½ years since then?**

**Well…he died this morning. So…when a pet dies, you just kinda lose stuff…**

**I happened to lose my writing passion for a while. I dunno, I just don't feel in the writing mood anymore…**

**And this probably wouldn't be that hard had this not been my fifth pet to die this year. (I'm using the school year right now) so yeah…I'll be off writing for a while, sorry. **

**On a more cheerful note, I'm teaching my friend(s) at school some Japanese. The first word they learned was "baka." Which, I think, is a good first word. So I was listening to "Ranma no Baka" in Science, and Rachel just HAPPENS to sit next to me, so she stole an earpiece and we were listening to "Ranma no Baka" the whole period. She adores it, it makes her happy. And the rest of the day she kept saying to every guy who passed, "Konnichiwa, baka!" or, even better, "Konnichiwa, bakainu!" I snorted into laughter at the guys' reaction. So, despite my morning, the afternoon was pretty darn good. **

**Anyway, since I probably won't update till Sunday (maybe Saturday), here's some of my fav authors with good stories you can read:**

**PinkCatsy**

**Brighteyez324**

**Ali B**

**Black and Bloody Rose**

**Jadecatseye**** (may have spelled that wrong)**

**So yeah, they have amazing stories you should check out to read while I go on short hiatus and listen to my Ranma ½ and such…**

**I love ya'll! Keep being amazing and loveable, see you on Sunday at latest!**

**~August**


	6. Chapter 5: A Nightmarish Heaven

**AN: Allo everyone, I'm updating! Yay! **

**I wanted to make this chapter more humorous (because that's what happens when I watch Ranma ½ for a while…God I love that manga…the anime's still not incredible, but as I watch it it gets better) but I decided we needed to heal Kagome's breaking heart somewhat first. So be prepared for a heart-wrenching and teary-eyed chapter! (hopefully you feel like that)**

**For this chapter, I mostly listened to the InuYasha music I have. I'm so behind in the anime right now…I'm at Kanna's death episode…(KANNA!!!!) I love her. Anyway, bring on the fun! (and some seriousness…okay, a lot of seriousness…)**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the characters, but you could've guessed that already, right?**

**CHAPTER 5:**

Kagome was dreaming. She could tell that much. She was in a world of nothing…a blank, empty world filled with obvious sorrow and pain of others…and maybe her own. When she took a step, she couldn't tell she was moving. It was a disturbing place to be, but she couldn't escape.

A single name echoed in her mind like it was haunting her. _Inuyasha…_a voice whispered from the cold. _Inuyasha…_it said again.

Kagome tried to back away, but it was pointless. She couldn't escape from it, it was all around her. _**Please, stop!**_ She begged, _**please!**_

_Inuyasha!_ It was taunting her now. _Why isn't he with you know, Kagome?_

Kagome wanted to slap someone, that someone being the source of this voice. Little did she know, the source was herself.

_**I don't want him anymore**__!_ Kagome explained heatedly.

_Uh-huh, and that's exactly why you allowed him to kiss you back there, hm?_

She felt her face heat up at the memory. _**Th-that was my way of saying goodbye to him. **_

_Or maybe you just wanted one more sweet memory of him before he walks out of your life forever with your sister?_

Poor Kagome stiffened. _**No…that can't be right, he wouldn't leave me for Kikyou…would he?**_

_ Well, you'll just have to find out, won't you?_

_**What if I don't want to find out?**_

_ A little too late for that now, isn't it?_

_**But…had I known it was going to be this painful…**_

_ Would you have stopped yourself from loving? You should know by now that you can't do that, Kagome._

_** Well…so what? I wouldn't have fallen so deeply in.**_

___I don't think that's true at all. _

_**Well, what do you know at all? Who are you, anyway?**_

___Would you like to see him? Right now?_

_**S-see who?**_

___C'mon Kagome, you must be smarter than that. _

_**I-Inu…**_

___Yes Kagome. He's right over there. Would you go to him?_

Kagome found herself stepping forward. "Inuyasha…" she murmured, extending her hand to him as if she could touch him and embrace him from so far off.

_Should you go to him?_

Kagome paused, but she kept walking. "Inuyasha." She said a little louder, stepping a little faster.

_Do you even have the right to go to him?_

She didn't falter this time, she started jogging now. "Inuyasha!" she called to the forlorn hanyou sitting a ways off.

_Will he take you back?_

She tripped over a rock, but as soon as she got up, she was running to him. "INUYASHA!" she practically screamed, running towards the one she loved…

_Do you honestly think that your relationship can ever be the same? Can it ever be healed?_

Kagome screeched to a halt. _**No…that can't be…**_

_Yes, Kagome. It is, whether we like it or not. _

_**No…this can't be happening!**_ Tears streamed down her face, slowly at first, as her sister ran into Inuyasha's arms, laughing as he picked her up, twirling her around with a huge grin on his face.

_Kagome?_

_**What?**_

___Weren't you going to him?_

An eerie silence echoed through her mind.

_Well?_

_**I've never seen him smile like that…**_

___No, I don't believe we have._

_**I thought I was the one who healed his broken heart…but was that night…that moment…that single kiss from Kikyou all it took to really make him laugh?**_

___Who's to say?_

_**I want to leave. I can't stand this anymore…please, get me out of here!**_

_ Kagome, this is reality, this is something we can't ignore._

_**No! I don't care! Please! Get me out of here!**_

__Kikyou and Inuyasha were leaning in towards each other…

_Kagome, look._

_**No! I don't want to see this! Stop it, please!**_

__The space between their lips was gone.

_**NOOOO!!!! INUYASHA!!!!**_

___This is the pain of a lost love, Kagome. _

_**Inuyasha…**_

___This is the pain you've never known, thrown at you full force._

_**Inuyasha…**_

___You don't like it, do you?_

_**Inuyasha…**_

___This is what someone very close to you has felt every time she sees you and Inuyasha together._

_**What? Someone…close to me?**_

___Yes. _

_**I've been so ignorant of one of my closest friend's feelings…but, then, this person loves Inuyasha as I do?**_

___Maybe more. You must discover that for yourself._

_**But, Ayame and Sango…**_

___Have they're own troubles. Think harder, Kagome. The answer will come to you in time. _

Inuyasha and Kikyou had pulled apart, at least, their lips had, and he now had his arms around her protectively. Kikyou's eyes were closed, perhaps out of pleasure.

_**He used to hold me like that.**_

___Yes, he did._

_**Does he…does he really want Kikyou more than me?**_

___That is a question you must figure out for yourself._

_**But-**_

___You will be able to discover it soon._

_**Inuyasha…**_

_ What about him?_

_**I was just…taking a waltz down memory lane, I suppose.**_

___Painful, isn't it?_

_**Yeah…kinda…**_

___Do you still love him?_

_**W-what?**_

___Do you still love him? Even after he hurt you like this?_

Kagome paused. She stared at Kikyou and Inuyasha. A breeze swept through her mind, engulfing the embracing couple as Inuyasha tightened his grip around the beautiful girl her held so gently.

_Kagome?_

_**Yes.**_

___What?_

_**I still love him. No matter what. I didn't know loving him would hurt so much, and had I known…I would've still jumped in anyway. Nothing in life, especially love, is really easy…but I know, no matter what, that my time with Inuyasha was more than just a simple crush that comes and goes. It was more than that. It was like…it was like we were meant to be in every way. And I don't want anything to change that, ever. Maybe I misunderstood what happened that night with Kikyou. But, real or not, I can't hate her. She's my sister, we share similarities, we share blood. No matter what happens, I can't hate her or Inuyasha. Because I love them both so much. They both mean so much to me. And if Kikyou can really make Inuyasha happier than I can…then I want them to be together. Their happiness is my happiness, so if that's what they want, it's what I want too. I trust them, and I love them. And if my relationship with Inuyasha will be nothing more than a pleasant memory in my old age, then so be it. If this is how things are supposed to work out, then I won't change anything. That doesn't mean I won't go and talk with Inuyasha, and ask him about everything. I'll probably speak to Kikyou too. Maybe Inuyasha and I are supposed to be together-maybe we're not. Either way, both Kikyou and Inuyasha are in my life for a reason, and if they are because they can make each other truly happy, then I'm happy too.**_

__Kagome surprised herself slightly with her speech. But it was so true. If this was how things were supposed to be, then she wouldn't do a thing to change them. Even if her love for Inuyasha was nothing to him at all.

_I see. So, when will you do this confrontation you spoke of?_

_**As soon as I feel well enough to.**_

___This could be a dangerous thing Kagome. Inuyasha is capable of breaking your heart in a thousand different ways. _

_**Maybe, but he's also capable of stealing it, and that's why I love him. **_

___What about your sister? She knows how much you love Inuyasha, yet she still went behind your back and betrayed you._

_**There has to be a reason for it. What Kikyou did…there has to be an explanation. Maybe she really loves Inuyasha. Maybe he really loves her. I have to find out, my life can't go on like this.**_

___That's a smart choice, Kagome._

_**Thank you. I still don't have a clue who you are…**_

___Who I am is not important. Besides, you know me._

_**I do?**_

___I'm always with you._

Kagome smiled. The words brought her immense comfort.

_**Will you be there when I speak to Inuyasha?**_

___Yes._

_**And Kikyou?**_

___Yes._

_**I…I have faith in myself. I have to. I must find out what really happened that night. And maybe…maybe heal my relationship with Inuyasha.**_

___I know you will, Kagome. Inuyasha wants nothing more right now than to be with you-_

_**You don't have to lie to make me feel better. I should wake up now…I have some planning to do.**_

___Yes, of course. _

_**Thank you. You've helped me realize something really important. **_

_ No, Kagome. You've always known it, I just helped you remember it. _

* * *

**Y'know, I was going to make a super hilarious chapter and everything, (as I mentioned earlier) but then I realized Kagome had to come to a decision about what to do. So I did it in the most Kagome-like fashion I could muster. I actually enjoyed writing this more than I thought I would, it was fun to ask Kagome pressing questions and make her answer all Kagome-y. **

**Now…I still have to figure out a way for Inuyasha to love Kikyou AND Kagome so the whole plotline and string of events that happen later make sense…grr…frustration! **

**I promise I'll add the other characters in the next chapter, probably. I just had to write a dream scene for Kagome all about Inuyasha…muwahahahahah…**

**Enjoy and review please!**


	7. Author's Note pt II

**Le gasp! It's another devious author's note!**

**Sorry guys…really…**

**Anyway, I did promise I'd update this today after my rehearsal…but, to be honest…I have no idea what to write next ^^;**

**Yes yes, I updated My Kag's X-Boyfriend before this one…I'm sorry, really, I just…meh, I got angry at this jerk I happen to like in my class and now I have no idea what to write for this next chapter yet…Gomen nasai!**

**Moving on. This is also a little hint/reminder thingy: If you go to my profile and scroll down, I have a list of my stories. What I write beside the titles is when I should be updating the story. So if I don't write it in the actual chapter, you can go there and find out when it will hopefully be updated. Also in that section I have info about any new stories I have up my sleeve…muwahahahahahah…**

**Grr…let's hope tomorrow I am able to POUND THAT DARN IDIOT INTO THE GROUND WHERE HE DESERVES TO BE and get some passion back for writing, ne? I love y'all!**


	8. Chapter 6: The Wall Breaks

**AN: ZOMG I'M ALIVE!!!! When did that happen? Ugh…sorry this took forever guys. Hard week at school. But THANK GOD for weekends. Even after Pocahontas rehearsal, I'm still alive and well and in a good mood~**

**I've somewhat forgiven that guy I talked about in MKXB chappy. Somewhat. One of his friends ended up informing me of a story they made about me~while being somewhat strange, it still put me in a good mood. **

**Music…hmm…A whole mess of things. Mostly "It's Love" by Rabbit. Ranma ½ movie 1 ending. Definitely not my fav part of Ranma, but the song rules. After that, I toyed around with ZnT openings because Ichiko's songs rock as well. And then I got bored of that…so I listened to more Cascadaness. **

**DISCLAIMER: I bet you didn't know I didn't own the characters! Well I don't!**

**CHAPTER 6:**

Kagome groaned a little as she opened her eyes, wincing as bright sunlight poured through the window straight to her line of sight. She shook the sleepiness from her body as she stood, though the dream still lingered.

"Ah, you're awake at last!" squealed a wrenchingly familiar voice and arms were soon around the girl.

"It's uh…good to see you too, Ayame." Kagome sighed, smiling at her friend and the bright red hair that was in her face.

"I get a hug too, Ayame!" snapped a girl standing not far off with long brown hair.

"Sango! You're here too?" Kagome's smile grew and Ayame let her friend go.

"Of course! We are your closest friends after all! Right?" Ayame grinned, although the last word of her sentence sounded more like a threat than a question or reminder.

"Ah…of course!" Kagome laughed nervously.

"School today was boring, in case you were wondering." Sango informed her as she sat down on the couch as well.

"Did I miss a lot?" Kagome asked anxiously.

"School-wise, you missed that math test, a science dissection, and a bunch of lit homework." Sango explained.

Kagome groaned and fell back down on the couch.

"Oh, but there's more." Ayame hissed, a sly grin spreading across her face.

Kagome's eyes snapped open. "What else do I have to do?"

"We're not talking work any more." Sango sighed, leaving the rest to Ayame. Kagome turned her attention to Ayame.

Ayame giggled and shoved her friend a little. "You're such a heartbreaker!"

Kagome narrowed her eyes a little. "Huh?" when Ayame showed no sign of further explanation, the distraught girl turned to her other friend. "Translate?" she asked Sango.

Sango sighed. "What she means is-"

"INUYASHA WAS TOTALLY DEAD TODAY!" Ayame yelped in uber excitement.

Sango slapped her forehead. "And by that she means-"

"HE DIDN'T TALK TO ANYONE ONCE ALL DAY!" Ayame squealed, her pitch going higher.

Sango had just about lost it. "What she means to say is-"

"IT WAS SO-" Sango shoved Ayame off the couch in exasperation.

"Will you let me talk in a tone Kagome can understand?!" Sango growled to the giddy red-head on the floor.

"Sorry!" she squeaked.

"That is the LAST time I buy you a Red Bull." Sango muttered, turning to face Kagome. "Inu-"

"Don't say anything else." Kagome said sharply. She was looking down, her ashy bangs covering her eyes from sight.

Ayame sat up, all signs of seriousness back. For a moment.

"Kagome…" Sango murmured, worry capturing her gaze.

"Inuyasha…wasn't himself today at all, was he?" Kagome asked, her tone cold. When she was met with silence, she sharpened it. "Was he?!"

It was Sango who answered. "No. He wasn't like himself at all, he was really quiet and spent a lot of time finding interest in the scenery outside."

Ayame popped up. "Like I said, totally dead." Sango shoved her down again.

"He wouldn't answer when Sensei called on him. He didn't pay attention to anyone or anything." Sango delved further.

"Once Sensei sent him to Principal's office because she thought he was ignoring him!" Ayame was up and down again in 5 seconds.

"I see." Kagome sighed, lifting her face. "It's my fault…all of it." She stood, wiping the tears that had pooled beneath her mocha-colored depths. "Everything…it's my…it's…IT'S ALL MY FAULT!" she cried, falling to her knees.

"Kagome!" Both Ayame and Sango cried as they raced to their friend.

"What have I done…I've destroyed Inuyasha…" Kagome whimpered, covering her mouth with her hand as though her own voice was poison to those around her.

"Kagome! That's not-"

Their heartfelt talk was interrupted by a scream and spatters of blood on the outside window.

* * *

(BACK IN TIME)

Inuyasha walked blandly out of school. That day had been such a blur, he could hardly think of anything but Kagome. He hadn't seen her in what felt like so long…she hadn't been there in school today either, and the only images he felt he had left of her was her hurtful glare upon him.

He hardly felt the sharp sting when a muscular hand slapped against his back. "Yo, mutt-face. You're scaring me. Snap outta it." Kouga growled, almost getting genuinely worried.

Inuyasha mustered enough character to punch the wolf-youkai. "Touch me again and I kill you." He threatened. But his threat was lacking something…what was it? Ah. Yes. Threat.

"Try not to bicker you two, Kouga's just worried about you, Inuyasha!" Miroku explained lightly with that same ridiculous grin on his face.

"You think I care?" both Kouga and Inuyasha asked, with different meanings of course.

Miroku sighed. Normally it was best to let the flames of the fight simmer down to nothing, but Inuyasha's behavior was scaring him as well. So, against his better judgement, he got involved. "Now now, can't we all get along like the great friends we are?" he asked nervously.

"Whose friends with who?" Kouga asked angrily.

"No." Inuyasha snapped tartly.

_Well so much for THAT plan…_ Miroku sighed wearily.

Without knowing it, they had walked down an alley near Kagome's street.

"Kuso…" Inuyasha growled. "Let's get outta here-" he was interrupted by an all-too-familiar scream.

"KAGOME!" he yelled, racing down the alleyway with Kouga and Miroku hot on his heels.

* * *

(BACK IN TIME AGAIN)

Kikyou sighed as she leaned against the tree, book in hands. It was an old romance tale, about a girl who was deeply in love with a man, and she worried about telling him day after day. Soon, without even telling him she loved him, the girl died. The man, unaware of the maiden, fell in love and married another.

Her eyes narrowed as she slammed the book shut. Stupid stories. She stood, twirling a strand of her long ash-colored hair in exasperation and perhaps annoyance. That stupid story couldn't mean anything…she waltzed down the alley by the shrine, which not even her own sister knew about. It was often her favorite place to think.

"Well well well, if it ain't Kikyou Higurashi." A voice as smooth as a snake's stomach floated through her ears and she whipped around.

"Who is it, and how do you know me?" Kikyou asked warily, her heartbeat picking up.

"Why, darling, I can't believe you'd forget me." A hanyou in a red haori emerged from the shadows.

Kikyou's eyes widened. "I-Inu…yasha?" she asked, astonished. Had she done it? Had he fallen in love with her?

"How are you fairing?" he asked, stepping closer.

Kikyou didn't move. It was really him. "I-I'm fine. And you?" she asked, taking a step closer to him.

"Much better now that you and I are here alone." He whispered soothingly.

Kikyou gasped as his arms entangled her in an embrace. She felt tears well up. That story had been wrong.

"You smell wonderful." He murmured into her hair.

Yes, the story was wrong. The maiden would be able to confess to the man, and that other girl would run away in tears. Yes. There was no other way to end it besides that.

"Inuyasha, I-" Kikyou tensed as strong claws ripped through her shoulder and part of her neck. A scream escaped her lips as she fell, Inuyasha's blood-covered claws held out in front of her face.

* * *

(NOW FORWARD A BIT)

"KAGOME!" Inuyasha cried as he entered the alleyway, a girl with long black hair covered in blood lay before him. "Kagome!" he gasped, about to run to her when he noticed the figure looming over her. "That's…" his voice went out. He found it again. "That's…me?" he guessed.

Kouga and Miroku, who had caught up, were equally…astonished.

The trio watched as the blood-thirsty Inuyasha in front of them transformed into a man with matted dark hair, the color of a never-ending night, with eyes as red as the blood that covered the befallen girl.

He looked up. "Greetings, Inuyasha." His voice was deceptive, quiet, as thought it were not there, but you could tell it was.

"Who-" he corrected himself, "what are you?" Inuyasha asked, flexing his claws in anger.

"I am Naraku." The demon smiled, a sly, evil smile that sent shudders down everyone's spine.

"What have you done to Kagome?" Inuyasha snapped, baring his fangs in rage.

"Inuyasha!" the hanyou jumped when he heard aforementioned girl's voice call his name from behind.

"K-Kagome?" Inuyasha whispered nervously, turning around. Nervous mood was lost though when he noticed Kouga grabbing Kagome's hands in his and then throwing her into an embrace.

"Kagome, you're alive and safe!" Kouga sighed, breathing in her scent to reassure himself it was really her.

"Wait, if that's Kagome, then who's..?" Miroku asked, turning to the girl sprawled in front of Naraku.

"KIKYOU ONEE-SAMA!" Kagome screamed as she shoved Kouga away and ran to her bloody sister.

"K-Kikyou?" Inuyasha murmured, walking over to her form as well.

"Let this be a warning, Inuyasha Taisho." Naraku growled, fading away, but nobody noticed.

"Kikyou…Kikyou!" Kagome whimpered, tears falling gently.

Inuyasha fell to his knees next to Kikyou's unconscious form. He was confused beyond reason. Kikyou was always so careful, never easy to hit. So why had Naraku gotten through to her? His mind snapped at the memory of Naraku's first form: himself. Naraku had tricked her by becoming someone she trusted and…loved. Someone she wouldn't hesitate to run to the side of. That was why Kikyou was laying like this before him. It was all his fault. What had he done to her.

He placed his hands beneath her torso and lifted her into his lap. He felt tears spike his eyes as he saw her wound that he, in a way, had inflicted upon her. His bangs shadowed his eyes as he looked down, a single tear trickling down and landing on Kikyou's face. The tear mixed with the blood that had specked her face, and they fell to the ground as one. "Kikyou…I'm so sorry…" Inuyasha murmured.

Kagome watched, unexplainable pain, sadness, and other emotions blasting her all at once. Inuyasha…she was losing him. Inuyasha…he was drifting away from her and into the arms of…Inuyasha…her sister. INUYASHA! Her heart screamed in agony, and Kagome stood, shaking her head. No…no…it can't be true…it just can't be…NO!!!

"Kagome!" Kouga called after her running form.

Kagome ran. She ran and ran and ran. She didn't care where she went, or what happened to her, she felt an awful feeling ripping her unguarded heart in two. Tears flew behind her.

She didn't care what happened anymore.

Nothing could compare to the pain that was overwhelming her.

Do your worst.

She wouldn't fight back.

* * *

**Hands raised on how many Kikyou-haters are mad at me now! Wooh!**

**XD sorry, I couldn't help but throw that in there. Whew, I think this chapter makes up for my unplanned hiatus, ne?**

**So can you tell how I'm incorporating real InuYasha plot in here? Huh, huh? **

**This chapter was more fun to write than I thought it would be, I didn't think I'd enjoy it because I'm tearing Kagome apart…sorry…**

**And look! I added Miroku, Sango, and Ayame! AND Naraku, about time, huh? Thanks for waiting and following le story patiently. I love you guys! **

**Oh yeah…speaking of Sango and Ayame, what happened to them at the end of the chapter? I gotta stop doing that…**

**Please review! Next chapter should be up tomorrow, because I actually have an idea for it!**

**August over and out! **


	9. Chapter 7: Reoccuring Memories

**AN: Hi guys, sorry for not updating yesterday, I honestly just didn't feel like it. And I watch Ponyo last night (Japanese version, of course. English later) IT WAS AMAZING! MIYAZAKI IS AMAZING! **

**I'm making this one depressing. Man, this whole story has been depressing. Maybe I should change it to Romance/Drama. That seems to fit it better. **

**Music was Spirited Away soundtrack, because Hayao Miyazaki is like, my favorite filmmaker in the world besides Tim Burton. I love when I have no homework~**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything spectacular, most credit goes to Takahashi-san~**

**CHAPTER 7:**

Kagome plopped down in the soft comforts of the motel bed. It was silky, soft, and not her own, which was perhaps what she loved most about it. Inuyasha hadn't kissed her in this bed. Inuyasha hadn't whispered sweet nothings to her at night when they should've been sleeping in this bed. Inuyasha hadn't sworn his loyalty to her over and over again in this bed.

She forced a weak smile as she looked at the words embroidered onto the pillow's silky surface. "Sweet Dreams", it said, oh so cheerfully, as if they didn't have a care in the world. Of course they didn't. Still, Kagome was surprised by how much comfort the two words brought. Two simple words, nothing more, but somehow, they said to her, "Everything's going to be okay."

Kagome was honestly beginning to doubt if that was true. Was everything going to be okay? She hadn't wanted to believe what happened that night at the party was real. But now she had gotten a first hand look at how Inuyasha really felt about her sister. It tore her up inside to think of it. So she didn't.

She sighed as she flipped over. She was running away. She remembered once, a failed runaway attempt when she was younger, maybe 5. The cause, as always, was Inuyasha.

_ "So, Kagome, are you excited to go see Inuyasha again?" her mother asked enthusiastically. Kagome, sitting in the backseat of the car, nodded. _

_ "I feel like I haven't seen him in forever!" she sighed. _

_ Her mother chuckled. _

_ After arriving, the rest of the day was like a blur of happiness and fun. Inuyasha had been Kagome's best friend since before they were born, literally, which made their parents all the more happy when they started dating 15 years later. _

_ It wasn't until Kagome was back home when she wanted to smack her so-called best friend. _

_ "Inuyasha! You followed me home?" Kagome asked enthusiastically, her mind racing with all the possibilities of why. _

_ Inuyasha's signature "Keh!" was all she received in response. _

_ "You came her to tell me something important, didn't you?" the little girl asked slyly. _

_ "As a matter of fact, yes." Inuyasha growled angrily. "You…"_

_ "I…?"_

_ "Smell awful." _

_ It took Kagome about 5 seconds to process in her mind what Inuyasha had just said. _

_ "I hate your scent, it sickens me!" he growled, sticking his tongue out at her._

_ Kagome punched him. That was the only time she had ever really physically hurt someone. She punched him, good and hard, before running inside with a tear-streaked face. Kagome had always made sure she smelled nice, and now hearing she smelled awful coming from the boy she really liked was enough to strangle her inside. _

_ "Mama, I just wanted to say I love you." Kagome said, depressed, that night with a Hello Kitty backpack in hand, tears still on her little face. _

_ "I love you too, Kagome!" her mother exclaimed cheerfully, not turning around._

_ Kagome felt more tears come. "Don't look for me." She murmured, and was gone from the room, the house, and soon, the neighborhood. _

_ Police were searching for the little girl everywhere. Little did they know she was in an alleyway in the city, crying, lost, alone, cold, and afraid. Rain fell from the sky, but she felt utterly unaffected by it._

_ "Why are you here?" came a voice Kagome thought she would never hear again._

_ "I-Inuyasha?" she whimpered, looking up from her ball form. _

_ "The whole town back home is going frantic over you." Inuyasha explained._

_ "It's probably more over you than me since you're here and nobody cares what happens to me anyways." Kagome sniffed, looking down again. _

_ "You're such an idiot!" Inuyasha yelled, running over to her and throwing his arms around her. "You could DIE out here, and then I would be without a best friend."_

_ "Yasha….you mean that?" Kagome asked, yet more tears welling in her eyes._

_ "Of course I do. I'm sorry about what I said back then…I…I actually…really like your scent." He murmured, looking away._

_ Kagome smiled gently as she grabbed his face and pulled it to face hers. "Thank you." She whispered as she kissed him on the cheek, causing the hanyou in her arms to turn bright red. _

Kagome smiled at the memory. Inuyasha may have been the cause she ran away, but he was also the cause she came back. She wouldn't have returned and would've probably died had Inuyasha not come after her that night. Her smile faded when she realized Inuyasha wouldn't come for her this time. He…he had to be with Kikyou.

She supposed she should have been with her sister then, too. But she didn't want to see her, especially not when Inuyasha was probably with her. She closed her eyes in pain at his name in her mind. _Inuyasha…_she thought desperately.

A knock at her door interrupted her thoughts. She sniffed as she got up and slowly opened it. "Who is it?" she asked wearily.

"You have someone on the phone waiting to speak with you, miss. Shall you take it?" a woman's voice answered.

Kagome sighed. She really wasn't in the mood for talking to anyone but herself, but inwardly she knew somehow she should take this call. "Yes, I'll come."

She followed the attendant down the hall to the front desk, where another woman was holding the phone out. Kagome took it warily. "Hello?" she asked weakly.

"KAGOME OH MY GOSH YOU'RE ALIVE! YOU ARE ALIVE, RIGHT? WHERE ARE YOU, EVERYONE'S WORRIED SICK!" came Ayame's voice through the phone.

_"The whole town back home is going frantic over you."_

"I'm fine, Ayame, I'm alive." Kagome said, forcing a cheerful tone.

"Thank God! Kagome? It's Sango!" a new voice entered her ears.

"Hi, Sango."

"Don't you 'Hi Sango' me! We are so worried over here!"

"Honestly, Sango, I'm okay."

"No, I know you're fine, I know my best friend."

Kagome's heart fell slightly. "Um…what?"

"It's your sister! Kikyou's DYING over here, Kagome! That demon has practically killed her! It's so scary!"

Kagome bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling.

"Thankfully Inuyasha's in the ER room with her, and his presence seems to help her, she's improving slowly, but she's definitely improving."

_"Nobody cares what happens to me anyways."_

"I-is he now?" she asked slowly to avoid her voice cracking in sorrow.

"Yes-Oh, he's coming out now. He's asking Ayame who I'm talking to."

Kagome's heartbeat sped up.

"Oh!"

"What now?"

"He…uh…he wants to talk to you."

It took Kagome a full minute to decide on how to reply. "All right, put him on."

"Here he is."

Kagome waited patiently to hear his voice, and when it came…it was like a beautiful serenade to her ears.

"Hey." His greeting was as informal, as usual. But it made Kagome smile, nevertheless.

"Hi." She said, her voice sounding tired, probably from her hours of crying after first falling onto the hotel bed.

"So word around here is you ran away again." He stressed 'again' in a way which made Kagome force a half-hearted laugh.

"Just call me the overdramatic one."

"Okay, overdramatic one."

"Thanks."

"Anytime."

"…"

"You still there?"

"How's Kikyou?" _Sure, don't listen to me and just say WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT! _Kagome sighed. She had been trying NOT to say that.

"Better than the doctors originally thought, actually."

"Oh…that's good."

"I guess. What about you?"

"What about me?"

"I mean, how are YOU doing?"

"What do I even matter, compared to my sister? She's in the ER and I'm in some hotel in the middle of nowhere!" Kagome found herself cry in exasperation as the words echoed in her mind again: _"And nobody cares what happens to me anyways!"_

"At least we know where Kikyou even is!" Inuyasha snapped. Kagome gasped and her hand flew to her mouth.

_"You're such an idiot!"_

"You could be in some dangerous situation right now, and I can't do anything about it!"

_"You could DIE out here-"_

"I won't be able to go on in anything if something happens to someone like you, someone that I really care about, and knowing that it was all my fault!"

_"and I would be without a best friend!"_

"Inuyasha…" Kagome murmured, memories flashing across her vision.

"You can be a real idiot sometimes. Then again, I can be too…" Inuyasha growled, not noticing Sango and Ayame listening a few feet off with wide grins.

_"I'm sorry about what I said back then…."_

"The truth is, I…"

_"I…"_

"What I mean to say is…"

_"I actually…"_

"I need you, Kagome."

_"really like your scent."_

Tears of joy were sliding down Kagome's cheeks, and she didn't care if every person in the lobby saw. A sob escaped through the phone.

"Kagome?"

"…" another sob.

"God, you're not crying, are you?" Inuyasha groaned, he could see her now. He hated when she cried, there was something about it that just tore him up inside.

"*sniffle* No."

"Yeah, right. You are too crying!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Fine, _blubbering._" Inuyasha decided.

"I AM NOT!"

"YOU ARE TOO!"

"AM NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

"AM NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

"I'm hanging up now."

"No! Wait! Tell me one more thing…"

Kagome sighed, shaking a smile on to her face. "What?"

"You're…coming back, right?"

Kagome's smile widened. "Only if you come get me."

"…WHAT?! I DON'T EVEN KNOW-"

"Relax, Inuyasha." Kagome giggled. "I'm packing as we speak."

"Damn, you had a whole bag packed?"

"…let's just say I hadn't exactly planned on returning."

"I'm…I'm sorry, Kagome, if it was anything I did."

Kagome bit her lip. So, he honestly didn't know why she had run away. Again. She forced a smile. Of course, he was the densest living thing on the face of the earth. What else could she have expected? "Thank you, Inuyasha." And she hung up.

_Kagome smiled gently as she grabbed his face and pulled it to face hers. "Thank you." She whispered as she kissed him on the cheek, causing the hanyou in her arms to turn bright red. _

* * *

**Did you like this chapter? I honestly think I could've improved parts…I dunno, I think I'm making Kagome forgive him too quickly. Then again, she was a little more reluctant this time, and the worst is yet to come. And she does love her dear little Nu Nu!**

**Childhood memory is based off of one of my own~**

**Please review! I LOVE hearing what you guys think! And hopefully this made some of you Kikyou haters a little happier, IF you like the KagInu pairing. **

**~August out again**


	10. Chapter 8: I Love You As You Are!

**AN: Yo! Opening night for Pocahontas is tomorrow night, wish me luck! I'm so excited for this show! And I found some extra time, so I thought I'd update. Ya know, let you all know I'm alive. **

**Not too much more to say…yeah…**

**Music was a pretty piano piece called "The River Flows In You-Yuriuma" or something like that. Very beautiful and inspiring…**

**Oh yeah, spelling bee was today and I got third! Only girl in the top three! Wooh!**

**DISCLAIMER: No…I don't own the characters…**

**CHAPTER 8:**

_"I won't be able to go on in anything if something happens to someone like you, someone that I really care about, and knowing that it was all my fault!"_

_ Inuyasha…_Kagome smiled as she recalled the precious memory, now locked away in her mind. She couldn't believe all he had said to her over the phone. It was as if the incident with Kikyou had never happened…as though Kagome had always been on his mind since the night she had walked away. It was enough to honestly make her smile and remember what times were like before her sister became a boyfriend-stealing-fiend-

She caught herself. Kikyou was her sister, she shouldn't be thinking such thoughts about her. It wasn't fair to her.

"Hi, I'm-" Kagome began as she stepped into her house. No one was home. Everything was dark, except for her own room, where the full moon's silver light was casting parts of her room in an eerie glow. Still, something about it was almost comforting. She sighed as she recalled why no one was there. Of course, Kikyou was in the hospital. They would all be there. Why wouldn't they?

It had been such a long day…so much had happened. She closed her eyes as she fell on her bed, trying to ignore the silver glare trying to fight its way into her vision. But sleep wouldn't come. All she could think about was Inuyasha. Everything she thought of reminded her of him.

"God, I wish I could see him again…" Kagome groaned out loud in exasperation. This was getting annoying.

"Who? You're not talking about Hobo, are you? Or Kouga? If it's that damn wolf you're referring to, I'm leaving." Snorted a voice from the window.

Kagome's eyes shot open and she slowly sat up. "I-Inu…yasha?" she asked hesitantly, as if wondering if he were really there. All she could make out was the silhouette of the hanyou against the black and silver night behind him.

"What? Not upset to see me, I hope?" Inuyasha asked a little nervously.

"No!" Kagome cried, hoping he wasn't thinking of actually leaving. That would NOT be nice. "That's not it at all…" she tried to say more, but words were lost as he stepped inside her room, the moon's light bringing out the silver in his hair and making it glow.

"Good. Ya know, I figured you'd be here in a while." Inuyasha explained, leaning against the wall.

"Why? Am I that transparent?" Kagome sighed. It was hard to talk to a guy when you couldn't see his expression.

"Actually, yeah." Kagome's face darkened at that comment. _Jerk…_she thought angrily. _If he wasn't so dang cute…_ "But that's a thing I always liked about you." Kagome stiffened a little at this, more out of surprise than anything else.

"Why?" she snapped, almost against her will, "I thought for sure you liked girls that were harder to read and understand." She turned away from him now, anger boiling in her eyes.

Inuyasha was face-to-face with her in a second. "I never said you were easy to understand." He growled. "All I said was that it's easy to expect what you're going to do next."

"Doesn't that make a relationship a bit boring?" she asked blandly.

"Is that why you dumped me?" Inuyasha asked seriously, his tone unchanging.

Kagome winced at this. _Ouch…_ Guess he wasn't taking it all in stride like she'd hoped. But what had she expected of it, anyway? For him to just shrug and move on? _But that's exactly what he DID do._ Stupid voice in her head that wouldn't go away… "That's not why I broke up with you." Kagome sighed.

"Then why?" Inuyasha asked.

He was really starting to scare her now. When did he get to be so serious?

"Tell me. Am I not good enough for you?"

"No! Of course not!"

"You never liked me anyway?"

"What are you-"

"Different? Is that it?"

"Different? What-"

"Because I'm a half-demon?" his voice dropped a little on this question, but to Kagome…it was as full and vicious as a slap to the face, which is how it felt. And she didn't like it. Which is maybe why she found herself practically screaming at him.

"Inuyasha, that's ridiculous! If there's one thing I especially love about you, it's because you're a half-demon! Don't be so obnoxious and inconsiderate to think that I broke up with you because you aren't full demon or full human. I would never do that, that trait is one of things that always drew me to you! So don't just go blabbering off about something that stupid! I can't believe you'd even ask me that!" her anger and love were mixing together in a dangerous concoction, and Inuyasha could probably see that.

"Well there's gotta be some reason, right? And that seems the most logical to me!" Inuyasha growled. He didn't want to fight with her anymore, but _damn_ was she annoying him!

"WHAT?!" Kagome cried angrily. "How can you even think that?" her tone softened a little. "Why would you think that?"

Inuyasha was a bit taken aback by that part. One moment she's screaming her head off, the next she's in tears. _Oh, God, please don't cry…_Inuyasha was silently begging. "So? Why did you break up with me then?" he found himself asking, maybe against his better judgment.

"Are you an idiot?" Kagome asked through gritted teeth. "Can you honestly be that dense? I didn't think it was possible!"

"I am not an idiot and I'm not dense." Inuyasha snapped. Keh, last time he visits her in the middle of the night. What had he ever seen in her anyway?

It wasn't until Kagome threw her arms around him in a long-needed embrace that Inuyasha remembered. It was like his memory was jogged as soon as her fragile body was in his care. All those smiles, laughs, comforting embraces, they were what held him together sometimes.

"I've said it before, right?" Kagome asked. "I've said that the fact that you're a half-demon only makes me love you more. You're such an idiot sometimes…"

"Kagome…" Inuyasha murmured into her hair as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer, if that was even possible. "I'm sorry."

Kagome's eyes opened slightly. "About what?" she asked tentatively.

"For what I said earlier. I just…" he paused, searching for the right words. "I just kind of lost it. With Kikyou hurt and you missing, it was like my world was tumbling before my eyes and I couldn't do anything to stop it."

Kagome was ready to whop him or something, but she only sighed. Moments like this were rare, especially since their relationship had practically fallen apart. She would forgive him, just right then, for his stupidity.

"Kagome?"

"Hm?"

"Can I…am I allowed to kiss you?"

Kagome pondered this for a moment. She missed his kisses. She missed everything about her relationship with him. Maybe…maybe their relationship wouldn't ever be able to be healed, or be the same, but…if not, maybe one last kiss wouldn't do any harm. "All right." Kagome whispered gently. "My lips are yours…at least for a while."

She had hardly finished speaking before Inuyasha's lips were pressed to hers. She had missed this feeling…they both had. It was something almost bittersweet now, to Kagome, at least, because she knew it wouldn't last forever, it couldn't. Not as long as Kikyou and Inuyasha were still…

She didn't want to finish her thought. For now, for that one night, for those precious moments, she had all she wanted. She didn't want to ruin it by thinking about complications with other people. She had Inuyasha to herself right then, and nothing could come between them.

So instead of drowning in a sea of despair and loneliness, she instead lay on the sandy shore, watching on with Inuyasha's warm presence beside her. And she would enjoy it for as long as it lasted. She just sat there, letting him kiss her, and kissing him back as well.

For that kiss, it was only them in the world. And that was all that mattered.

* * *

**D'awwww, romanticy! No, they haven't fully made up yet, but they're on better speaking terms at least. And look! This whole chapter was KagInu with a few thoughts of Kikyou, but no other characters! Wooh!**

**Sorry…it's…slightly shorter than other chapters, only cuz I'm exhausted and I can only put so much into a beauty chapter, which is what chapters that are like this are going to be called from now on. **

**Next chapter…will either be funny, or painful. Keh. Whatever I feel like on Sunday after exhaustedness ensues. I love you all! So do Kagome and Inuyasha! Which is why I decided to please all the KagInu peeps out there with a good feel-good chapter. Please review, love y'all, see ya Sunday! **


	11. Chapter 9: Technically

**AN: *sniffle* I love you all!...and that's all I have to say. No, no…jk, jk, but I got some awesome reviews from you guys so I decided to update this little dahling. *is in a sound meeting with parents and is typing slowly and quietly if that's at all possible with her laptop***

**Gonna cut this intro thingy shorter today and get on to the story since I'm pretty sure 90% of you don't read these things anyway! (I could be wrong, it's happened before) Music was Mermaid Melody stuff since I wanted this to be a funny chapter and I'm re-watching Mermaid Melody and it brings back lovely nostalgia~**

**(I love Ever Blue!)**

**CHAPTER 9:**

"So who's the most annoying guy in the class?" Kouga was going around to all the girls in class saying. Now he was at a girl named Kotomi (Itazura na Kiss XD), a giggly brown-haired girl. Inuyasha and Miroku were trailing behind their friend. Inuyasha looked like he could care in the least. Miroku seemed to enjoy meeting all the young ladies of the class, which irritated Sango (though she denied it strongly later).

"The most annoying would have to be Chiharu-kun." Kotomi explained lightly, which caused a depressed sigh from aforementioned boy. Kagome snickered. Rumor had it that Kotomi and Chiharu used to date and were really close, until Chiharu was caught kissing Kotomi's best friend Hime. This is a situation that just went further to prove that relationships between girl and boy never worked. Inuyasha was far at the back of Kagome's mind while she thought this.

"I'm telling you, Kotomi-" Chiharu began.

"That's Michiyo-san to you, hentai!" Kotomi snapped angrily.

"It's a misunderstanding-" Chiharu tried again.

"Save it." Kotomi snapped.

"Anyway, sweetie…" Kouga began, causing an eyelash-flutter from Kotomi and a snarl from Ayame, sitting next to Kagome and the empty seat that belonged to Sango. "Who's the hottest guy in the class?"

"Oh that's easy, Kouga-kun!" Kotomi squeaked, causing a louder growl from Ayame at this girl's familiarity with her Kouga.

"And it is…?" Kouga asked.

"You, of course!" Kotomi giggled, and Kagome had to hold Ayame down so she wouldn't maim the poor girl.

Chiharu looked away, and Kagome almost felt bad for him. True, he had been caught kissing the famous sexy Hime, Kotomi's best friend, but…somehow, it seemed like not even **he** deserved this. She half-wanted to go over to Kotomi and say she knew exactly how she felt. But she didn't. She had settled things with Inuyasha for the time being, and she didn't want to just turn around and stab him in the back.

"Ugh, sorry I'm late everyone." Sango sighed as she brushed into the room gracefully, setting her down her bag and herself as well.

"No prob, you're just missing the beautiful survey." Kagome sighed, fiddling with a pencil.

"Oh, well in that case, I'm out-" Sango's sentence and stand-up was interrupted by Miroku grabbing her hand, which surprised and scared the hell out of Ayame and Kagome, who had both only ever seen the monk grab an inappropriate part of the taijiya's body.

"Please don't go, milady Sango." Miroku begged with beautiful sparkling eyes.

_Damn those gorgeous eyes of his…_Sango growled internally, glaring at the pathetic soul holding her hand.

"What do you want, houshi?" Sango snapped.

"Only you." Miroku whispered, causing Sango to blush in surprise.

"W-what?"Sango stuttered, reddening a little more, IF that was possible. Off to the side, Kagome and Ayame wouldn't stop snickering.

"And your beautiful body, that is." Miroku explained, beginning to rub her rear affectionately.

"SAVE YOUR LOUSY AFFECTION, HOUSHI!" Sango yelled, slapping him se he in-turn sported the all-too-familiar red hand mark on his cheek. "I'M. LEAVING."

Kagome sighed. "Every time…this happens every damn time."

"You're telling me." Ayame groaned, flipping through her notebook.

"Sooo…Kagome." Kouga whispered into her ear. Inuyasha flicked his ears in their direction, a low growl rumbling in his throat.

"Relax, Inuyasha. Kagome's open ground now-" Miroku's helping gesture was stopped when red ebbed at Inuyasha's irises. "-technically." The monk finished nervously.

Inuyasha calmed a bit. "Technically." He grumbled, looking away.

"Yes, Kouga-kun?" Kagome asked sweetly, flashing the wolf youkai a pretty smile.

Inuyasha felt his heart clench. Kagome hadn't smiled at him like that in what seemed like ages. Jealousy tugged at his heart, but he ignored it best as he could.

"Who's the most annoying guy in class?" Kouga asked, leaning in closer to the raven-haired girl staring up at him with glittering brown eyes.

Their moment was interrupted by a flying pencil eraser that thwacked Kouga's cheek. Kouga looked up in annoyance to see Ayame staring at him coldly with narrowed eyes.

"Whadda ya want, Ayako?" Kouga growled.

"You writing a book or something?" Ayame growled, ignoring the name-mixup.

"So what if I am?" Kouga challenged.

"Then leave this chapter out and call it a mystery." Ayame shot back before grabbing her pile of books as well as Kagome's wrist before leaving the room just as the bell rang.

* * *

"Hey, I heard Ayame stood up to Kouga in homeroom!" whispers echoed through the hall as Kagome and Ayame made their way to Literature. (English for me in my school, Language Arts for others…you get the idea, right?)

"Well you're the talk of the school now, Ayame." Kagome pointed out as the wolf youkai's grip on the human girl's wrist grew tighter. "Ow! Ayame, what the-"she was interrupted as Ayame pulled her into a quiet corner.

"What were you thinking back there?" Ayame hissed into Kagome's face, her grip on her friend's wrist tightening even more.

"Back where? OW, Ayame!" Kagome winced as she saw the faintest trickle of blood escape her wrist. She ignored it, if Ayame found out she had made her bleed, she would never figure out what she was mad about.

"In homeroom! You know Kouga has a huge crush on you, and you still flirt with him! In front of Inuyasha, no less! Have you no shame?" Ayame growled, hiding the tears that were biting her eyes.

"That was hardly flirting, Ayame! He greeted me, so I greeted him!" Kagome snapped.

"You were smiling like it was Inuyasha you were talking to! And you honestly couldn't tell he was about to…to…" she bit her lip to keep it from trembling.

"To what?" Kagome snapped icily. Her wrist was starting to hurt and she really wanted to get to class.

"Damnit, Kagome! He was about to freakin' kiss you!" Ayame cried, louder than she had probably meant to.

Kagome froze in her friend's grip and replayed the whole situation in her mind. No. Way. So that was why Kouga's face had been seemingly getting closer and closer! It's a good thing their lips never made contact, or wolf guts would have spattered the windows and desks for weeks! She tried to hide a smile at the thought of Inuyasha's raging jealousy. It faded quickly though, when she remembered that technically he had no right anymore to protect her from other guys. Technically, she could be Kouga's girlfriend now. And technically, Inuyasha and Kikyou were dating now anyway-

No. She couldn't be thinking such thoughts. Technicallies were just technicallies and therefore not the truth. But now she was confusing herself. So instead, she found a way out of Ayame's death grip on her wrist and threw her arms around her friend.

"H-huh?" Ayame stuttered.

"Ayame, I am so sorry!" Kagome whispered. "I hadn't even noticed…normally he never gets that close to me as long as Inuyasha is within 30 yards of me. But since Inuyasha and I split up, I've been kind of…not myself. I would normally notice when Kouga's affections shine through, but today…my mind's been elsewhere. I'm really sorry, Ayame. I'll be more careful from now on."

Ayame smiled and hugged her friend back. "It's okay Kagome. Since Inuyasha is clearly going to be of no help, I'll protect you."

Kagome laughed. "Thank you. Now," she began, pulling apart, "we have to get to class.

Ayame looked blank for a moment.

"…Literature?" Kagome hinted hopefully.

"OH CRAP CLASS!!!" Ayame exclaimed and she grabbed Kagome's hand this time and pulled her through the halls and plunked her into her seat just as the late bell rang.

* * *

"So, continuing on with our poetry unit…" the teacher drawled on. Ayame yawned stiffly. Kouga was glaring at her from the back of the class, but, truthfully, Ayame was happy he was looking at her the whole period. Sango snorted when she explained this later.

"I've mentioned that not all poems have rhyming words, for instance…" _Ugh…why doesn't she just shut up and admit she has no idea what she's talking about?_ Inuyasha thought angrily, his mind going numb from the teacher's robotic tone. He sent a sharp glare in Kouga's direction. Damn wolf…flirting with Kagome like that…

"_Relax, Inuyasha. Kagome's open ground now…technically." _Inuyasha winced as his friend's words replayed in his mind. It was true…technically…but it annoyed him to no fucking end. Come to thing of it…_damn monk. _He though bitterly.

"So, with that, we will now be writing rhyming poetry. Get to work now." It took about 5 whole seconds for the class to realize the teacher had stopped talking and they had to actually do something productive now. Right at the 6th second, the room was a-fill with chatter as classmates "wrote rhyming poetry." (Translation: talked about weekend plans, how Kikyou-sama was doing, who was hotter, Inuyasha or Kouga?, did Kagome and Inuyasha really break up?, What is Sango's problem, and what kind of therapy does she need?, oh, Miroku-sama, you're so cute! *cue growling Sango*)

Kouga sighed as he stared down at his various doodles, most were epic plans on destroying Inuyasha and stealing Kagome away. He was looking at a particularly gruesome one, where Inuyasha's head was rolling away as Kagome cried a single tear for her fallen lover before leaping into Kouga's arms and smothering him with _true_ affection, something mutt-face could never give her. He smirked as he imagined it. He glanced over at the desk where Kagome, that damn Arake, and that taijiya Miroku was always pissing off were sitting. Kagome looked so beautiful as she concentrated on writing a poem. _Oh yeah, that damn poem…_he thought bitterly. He might as well write a love poem to Kagome, now that she and Inuyasha were officially broken up. He thought he would never see the beautiful day…

Inuyasha plunked his stuff down next to Kouga. "Might I join thou stinkiness?" he smirked.

"Of course, thy mutt-faced." Kouga retorted as he started the first stanza. Miroku joined them as well, sporting yet another lovely red-hand mark across his face.

Ayame sighed as she twirled her pencil around, creating strange squiggles on a page. "What should I write about?" she wondered aloud dreamily.

"Unrequited love?" Sango suggested bitterly, receiving a notebook-slap-on-back from Kagome.

"Brilliant!" Ayame cried, and in her excitement, breaking the lead of her pencil. "Damnit…" she muttered, standing to walk over to the pencil sharpener, passing Kouga's group in the process.

"What rhymes with June?" Kouga was asking now.

"It doesn't." Ayame muttered as she stalked by.

Inuyasha, Miroku, Kagome, and Sango sniggered appreciatively, though Kouga looked completely clueless, which caused a headdesk sort of reaction from Ayame. _I have GOT to get a better taste in men…_she thought bitterly.

Kagome smiled as she watched the various interactions between Kouga and Ayame, already seeing a beautiful relationship forming sometime in the future. She couldn't help but wonder if the same relationship was still holdable between her and Inuyasha…deep in her heart, she felt it wasn't.

Hojo, a stuttery, nice, somewhat good-looking boy entered the room and left behind a note on Kagome's desk. Kagome blinked in surprise. She didn't think Hojo was capable of being that sly. She read the note with growing interest, then glanced up at Inuyasha. The image of his lips pressed passionately against her sister's burned in her mind once more, fueling the hidden fire within her. She re-folded the note. Technically, she was free of a relationship right now, so it wouldn't be cheating to go out with Hojo, right? Technically, she didn't belong to anyone. Technically, Inuyasha wouldn't rip Hojo's intestines out his mouth if he caught them kissing. Technically, Kagome deserved a guy who wouldn't go behind her back with her sister. Screw it, technically, Inuyasha was a goddamn jerk.

Technically.

* * *

**I'm pretty sure this one was slightly longer, though I could be wrong. Oh, dear memories from my own school life and the idiots that make up my class. Ayame's answers to Kouga's crap was something I would probably do XD as I'm planning to when we start **_**writing**_** in our poetry unit. I'm so excited to use the "it doesn't" line! **

**Thanks guys for the wonderful reviews. I love you all! I'll probably update MKXB tonight too, because I got my homework done right after school and my anime-watching spree is on hold. I started Special A last night, but for now, the second episode can be on hold while I update for my adoring fans~**

**By the way, on a random note before I leave you all for a while, I'm going to host a kind of contest where I post something and you "review" as your entry. Or something. I'll explain it more later, but until then, check my profile for update info on the contest and my stories. **

***whew* this was longer than the intro! XD Love ya!**

**~August out**


	12. Chapter 10: Long Lost Sisters

**AN: Hi guys…yes yes, I'm alive. Just…things got a little insane. Meaning: My love life got seriously messed up, my friends have gone insane, school SUCKS, my theatre group is amazing (I'm the Cheshire Cat in Alice In Wonderland~) and boys are idiots. Okay, most of them are. I've met one…maybe a few actually respectable and understandable guys in my life. The others…God, I will NEVER understand them. **

**Music was "A Little Pain" by OLIVIA…other words. **

**CHAPTER 10: (wooh! I feel accomplished!)**

It was a quiet night, not unlike the ones before it. Inside her room, a girl with ebony locks and deep mocha-colored eyes opened and closed her phone mercilessly. She willed her wandering eyes to glance at the screen, then looked away in exasperation. She finally stood, sauntering over to the window. A light breeze rushed over her body like a gentle stream, the brilliant half-moon shining right on the young girl. She blinked in the silver light.

Suddenly her phone vibrated in her hand, causing her to jump. She looked down at the caller ID and her face immediately lit up with an irresistible smile. She read the text with sparkling eyes and replied happily. She must have been giggling or something though, because in a second her door was cracked open and a sharp golden glint sliced through the darkness.

"Why, this Sesshomaru asks, are you not asleep?" the man with long, shimmering silver hair and that cold expression asked irritably.

"Ah!" the young girl gasped, snapping her phone shut. "Er-no reason. Especially. Honestly. I promise!"

Sesshomaru's expression remained dominant, unchanging. "I see." He replied robotically.

The girl laughed nervously. "I'm…uh, going to bed right now!" she was under the covers of her bed in a second. "See?"

"I'm not blind, despite what you seem to think. I am not deaf either." Sesshomaru sighed. "I'm beginning to regret letting you stay here, you're giggling at night is beginning to irk me."

"Wah! I'm giggling? I'm so sorry!" the girl gasped, slightly terrified.

Sesshomaru's lip twitched. She-although he would never admit it out loud,-was exceptionally cute when she was scared. He saw that side of her a lot, since he, evidently, was frightening. "Whatever. Goodnight." He began to close the door.

"Anou…" the girl spoke up. "Sesshomaru-sama?"

Sesshomaru paused to let her know he was listening.

"Is it…is it all right if I go out tomorrow?" she asked, brown eyes quivering, waiting in response.

"Do as you please, just remember our promise." And the door was shut.

The girl smiled that smile of hers again, and snuggled under the covers happily. Tomorrow would be a good day.

Outside, in the hallway, under his breath, Sesshomaru added, "Be careful." He started to go down the stairs when he looked back at her temporary quarters. "Rin."

* * *

A gentle ringtone awoke Rin from her sleep. She deftly fumbled around for her phone and smiled lightly when her small hand closed around it. She stifled a yawn, then flipped the phone open to see a text from-

"Kagome?" Rin wondered aloud. What would she want at this hour?

Kagome and Rin had grown to be friends since Rin started seeing Sesshomaru a lot and since Kagome had started dating Inuyasha. Rin had been one of the many who was devastated when Kagome and Inuyasha broke up, though her pain was nothing compared to Kagome's broken heart. The two used to speak a lot, but since the break up…things had been, oh, slower, shall we say? Yet, the two's friendship was stronger than many. They had been through quite a lot…before the dating and staying at the house had begun.

"Moshi moshi, Rin here."

"Rin! Thank God you answered!" Kagome's anxious voice nearly made the small girl smile.

"Some kind of emergency?" Rin asked, stretching.

"Right…sorry to be calling you so late." Kagome apologized, beginning to regret it.

"Oh, no problem. I couldn't really sleep as it was anyway." Rin lied.

"Anyway, the emergency…"

"Right."

"I think…"

"That's new."

"Rin!"

"Sorry, carry on." Rin smiled. Oh, how she had missed teasing her sempai.

"Anyway…"

"I'm listening."

"I think…I just made the biggest mistake of my life."

"You finally realized how idiotic it was to break up with Inuyasha?" the moment the words left her mouth, she regretted it.

"No!" Kagome snapped, anger boiling over. "If anything, breaking up with Inuyasha was the best decision I've ever made. God, he's so damn dense! He still hasn't figured out why I broke up with him, though it's so blandly obvious! I leave him alone for a second and come back to find him mouth-to-mouth with my sister! My flesh and blood! Then we get back to his house and he's all casual, I love you Kagome! Like nothing freaking happened. God…I was such an idiot not to see what he really was before."

Rin's eyes narrowed in sadness. She'd heard Inuyasha's side of the story…and it was slightly different from Kagome's. But now, Rin could see why Kagome had broken up with Inuyasha. When Inuyasha explained it, he made it seem that Kagome had no right or reason to break up with him, but from Kagome's perspective…she clearly did. Rin sighed. "I'm sorry to have brought it up…I didn't mean to recall so many bad memories for you."

Kagome bit her lip to stop the tears that were threatening to burst out. "No…I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."

An awkward silence filled the conversation, till at last Rin couldn't take it anymore. "Anyway, biggest mistake?"

"Oh yeah! Right!" Kagome breathed a sigh of relief. Rin didn't seem mad Kagome had snapped at her like she had. That was good.

"What boy does it have to do with? If it's the worst mistake of your life, it has to do with a boy."

"You always have been able to see through me…take a guess."

"Miroku."

"Why am I not surprised he was the first one out of your mouth?"

"No, huh? Um…Sesshomaru-sama!"

"I try to avoid him at all cost, no offense."

"None taken."

"Keep guessing."

"Um…what was his name? Homo…Hobo…"

Kagome winced. Nailed it. "Hojo?"

"Yeah, him."

"Unfortunately, yes."

"…ARE YOU INSANE?!" Rin cried angrily.

"You haven't even heard what I did yet!"

"If it's with Hojo, it's bound to be bad."

"I…um…sort of…agreed…to go out with him."

Silence.

"You…what?"

"Don't make me say it again, Rin."

Silence.

"Sorry Kags, I have to go now. Kohaku-" Rin froze. Uh-oh…

"Ohoh, what about Kohaku?" Kagome asked slyly. Internally, she was filled with relief that the subject had changed.

"Er-nothing! Nothing at all! But, um…he's…er, waiting for me…so…um…" Rin twiddled with her fingers nervously.

"You should go then. Be sure to tell me all the details!" Kagome smiled. Rin was similar to Kagome in many ways. Okay, so Kagome wasn't attracted to the cold, older brother type, but that almost made Rin all the more adorable, the way she had been able to change Inuyasha's older brother.

_ Inuyasha…_her heart clenched at the very thought of his name. Things had been pretty awkward between them lately, and Kagome didn't like it. But, she couldn't change it. Well…maybe…

Nope. Inuyasha had to apologize first. Pft, like that was ever going to happen. He's too stubborn to admit if he was bleeding to death. Kagome smiled again and almost laughed at the remembrance of Inuyasha's prideful pout.

"Ah! Sesshomaru-sama! Talking? Er, no, I wasn't talking! To Ko-Kohaku? Of course I wasn't talking to him! Why on earth would I be talking to him? I mean, he's practically killed me before, I would never want to talk to him…yes, Sesshomaru-sama."

Kagome giggled slightly at Rin's awkwardness with Seshomaru about Kohaku. It was true though, Sesshomaru had saved Rin before from Kohaku's deadly clutches. Now, however, the two were inseparable, and were one of the cutest couples Kagome could imagine. If Sesshomaru didn't get in the way of it, that was. "Bye, Rin! Talk to ya later!" she whispered so as not to alert Sesshomaru's incredible hearing.

"Bye now, Sesshomaru-sama! I think I hear the phone ringing!" A door was shut, and the phone call ended.

On two separate ends of town, two girls with silky black hair and deep chocolate brown eyes got ready for a date. One smiled the whole time, the other didn't know what to make of it. One's grin was impeccable as she raced downstairs to greet the boy before her, while the other sighed and prayed the day wouldn't be that bad. One blushed when the boy beside her leaned in and kissed her cheek, the other yearned for another boy…one far away with long silver hair and puppy ears she used to stroke.

The two girls couldn't have been more different as they walked off on their dates. Neither girl, however, was safe from brothers' jealous eyes.

* * *

**Ah yeah…I think I destroyed Rin's cuteness in this chapter a little. Nevertheless, have I mentioned before how much I ADORE Rin? Seriously, she's so dang cute, and the way she slowly changed Sesshomaru through the series was amazing. *glares at KagSess supporters* Only Rin has the patience to deal with Sesshomaru. Only Rin has that spark that Sesshomaru likes. Sesshomaru would never be attracted to Kagome, nor vice-versa. I'm sorry to burst your bubbles.**

…**Sorry, I just get really creeped out when I meet a KagSess supporter. Their minds are scary places that I never, ever want to go into. I'm perfectly happy in my pool of InuKag fluff. **

**Next chapter will be back and forth between Kagome's date and Rin's date, because, honestly, why wouldn't Inuyasha find out about Kagome's date with Hojo? And then tail her everywhere and try to ruin it? And Sesshomaru? Well, obviously he has to make sure Kohaku is not trying to kill Rin again, right? **

**:) Oh I'm so excited to write the next chapter. Bah. Hah. Hah. **

**P.S. Thank you guys for your lovely notes about the whole gossip thing. I don't know if things have gotten better, but I feel so loved by you guys, it almost doesn't matter. *throws cookies and roses* Thank you!**

**Love ya all!**

**~August over and out**


	13. Chapter 11: Date of Doom

**AN: Yo! *dodges random thrown objects while slo-mo Matrix music plays* Ahem, anyway, sorry for not updating for like, EVER! I was really sick, and there were shows to do, and blah school, but I'll try to update faster from now on!**

**Yeah…still planning the dream chapter for my other story, so I now present…THE DATE CHAPTER. Duh duh duh! **

**Muwahahahahaha. I'm so excited for you guys to read this. Kagome wants a peaceful date with Hojo to clear her mind…but what happens when Inuyasha finds out about it? He thinks that he and Kagome are back together…technically. :)**

**Music was Kelly Clarkson. Specifically You Found Me, Beautiful Disaster, Miss Independent, and Addicted. Quickly becoming my favorite songs~**

**DISCLAIMER: If I did own the gloriumptious characters, I wouldn't exactly be writing fanfiction, now would I?**

**CHAPTER 10: (yay! Chapter 10!)**

"Mom, would the green sundress or the black tank and jean short-shorts be good for a date?" Kagome poked her head around the corner of the hall to shout to her mother one Saturday morning.

Mrs. Higurashi's eyes lit up. "A date? You and Inuyasha got back together? EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!" her mother's squeal sent a shiver up Kagome's spine.

"Um…not exactly…" Kagome explained nervously.

"What does that mean?" Mrs. Higurashi snapped.

"Er-well…the date's with Hojo, actually." Kagome stuttered.

"Oh…well, Hojo's nice too." Mrs. Higurashi smiled, then pointed to the green sundress that Kagome was holding in one hand. "Definitely the sundress." She winked.

"Arigatou, Mama!" Kagome called as she zipped into her room to change. She smiled as she strapped on some sandals and glanced at herself in the mirror, doing a little twirl. With any luck, the date would go smoothly. Perhaps she could even develop some feelings for Hojo. It would be better than just sulking around all the time over Inuyasha, wouldn't it?

"Kagome! Hojo's here!" her mother called from downstairs.

Kagome started down the stairs and smiled when she saw Hojo. "Hi there, Hojo-kun!" Kagome greeted him enthusiastically.

Hojo blushed slightly. "H-hi, Kagome." He stuttered.

Mrs. Higurashi smiled, but it faltered when Kagome grabbed Hojo's hand and headed out the door. _Inuyasha…_she begged mentally, _please fix whatever happened. I wouldn't be able to stand having anyone but you be my son-in-law._

Kouga's hands slammed the table Inuyasha was sitting at angrily. "Did you get asemnia, mutt?" he growled.

"I believe the term is 'amnesia', wolf." Inuyasha muttered. "And, as a matter of fact, no."

"Whatever, but explain this to me!" Kouga growled, flashing a note with Kagome's curvy handwriting on it.

"_Sure, sounds fun!_" Inuyasha read. "Is there some significance to this, Kouga?" Inuyasha asked angrily. He recognized Kagome's handwriting immediately, and it angered him that she was passing notes to another guy. _Calm down…_he told himself, _it might be one of her obnoxious friends, it's not necessarily a guy._

"Fine then, read this." Kouga snapped, shoving another note in Inuyasha's face.

Inuyasha sighed, taking it. The red that had been slowly ebbing at his retinas darkened and spread as he read. "W-what?" he growled.

"Can you explain to me why my beautiful girl is on a date with Hobo?" Kouga hissed.

"No." Inuyasha growled, silver bangs hiding his reddened glower. "But you can bet I'm gonna find out."

"What drinks can I serve you?" the waitress at the restaurant Hojo had chosen asked cheerfully.

"Surprise us!" Kagome said slightly without thinking. She laughed at Hojo's face, but he soon smiled and nodded at the waitress.

"Apparently whatever you see fit for a first date." Hojo explained.

"Of course!" the waitress giggled, then walked off to the kitchen cheerfully.

Kagome grinned. She hadn't smiled this much in a day for what seemed like centuries. She looked at Hojo as he stared quizzically at the menu. She wondered, silently, how long it had been since she had been on a date with Inuyasha. Come to think of it, this was the restaurant they went to for their first date, too. She gave a small smile as she shook her head, clearing it of such thoughts. She was with Hojo now, and Inuyasha was a thing of the past.

"So? How are they?" Ayame begged as the waitress who had treated a girl with ebony hair and a boy with fluffy brown hair and a cheery expression walked towards them. Her chocolate brown hair, tied up in a high ponytail, swished as she approached.

"Having a lot of fun." She growled.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Inuyasha groaned as he rubbed his temples.

"Might I mention how beautiful you look as a waitress, Milady Sango?" Miroku purred seductively as his hand reached lower and lower.

"Touch me and your life ends." The waitress growled.

"Oh, Sango, what do we do?" Ayame asked desperately.

"We've got to ruin this date if we want Kagome to be back with Inuyasha over there." Sango sighed, removing her apron.

"Wait, Sango." Inuyasha stopped the girl from removing the rest of her outfit.

"Huh?" Sango looked back at her friend quizzically.

"If we want to keep an eye on them, you're a waitress for a day." Inuyasha looked at her with pleading eyes.

"W-WHAT?!" Sango cried as Miroku grinned that lecherous grin of his.

"So…uh, Kagome." Hojo began hesitantly. "H-how are you?"

"Wonderful!" Kagome sighed in ecstasy.

"Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't I be?" Kagome responded, smiling gleefully.

"G-good!" Hojo laughed nervously.

Unseen by the happy couple in the booth, red ebbed at the edges of a certain hanyou's eyes. It wasn't fair. Technically, he and Kagome had sort of kind of gotten back together, so who did she think she was, going out with another guy? It was cheating in the worst form. He growled when he noticed Hobo's hand move slowly yet surely closer to Kagome's. He smirked though when Kagome lifted her hand just in the nick of time. This surprised Hobo, who ended up freaking out and knocking his drink over. Kagome started laughing. And smiling that wonderful smile of hers.

He clenched his fists in jealousy. He could hardly remember the last time Kagome had acted like that around him.

_"Has it ever occurred to you for once in your pathetic existence that I don't give a damn what you think?" _

Inuyasha snarled.

It couldn't be true. She had been lying.

Right?

"I hope you like Shirley Temples!" the waitress giggled as she brought the bubbling rosy-pink drinks to the happy couple in the third booth.

"Oh, how did you know? They're my favorite beverage!" Kagome laughed as she took hers and immediately popped the cherry in her mouth.

"Would you believe I've never had one before?" Hojo whispered to the waitress. Surprisingly, it was easier to talk to her than to Kagome.

"Oh my! Well then, drink as many as you want and they're all on the house!" the waitress laughed.

Kagome smiled as she stared outside, drinking in the sunrays that shone through the window. It felt so good to…_smile_ again. To act comfortable around a guy again. To be _herself_ again. Man, had she missed it. But it didn't matter now. She smiled across at Hojo as he tentatively sipped the bubbly beverage.

Both froze when the waitress, who had been watching them, whacked a customer over the head with her silver tray. "STUPID HOUSHII! I'M BUSY RIGHT NOW, DAMMIT!" the waitress shrieked.

Kagome blinked. Once. Twice.

Hojo, meanwhile, was unconscious because of the extreme decibel level.

"But my darling Sa-" the man stated before being whopped over the head again, this time more out of desperation than anger.

"What _is_ your name?" Kagome asked the waitress, who, when she thought about it, did look hauntingly familiar.

A few tables back, an exasperated hanyou was ready to go rip the monk's hands right of his body, but restrained himself to see how Sango would recover. _PLEASE don't let her notice, PLEASE!_

"Uh…I'm…uh…my name is…Sa…" Sango fought desperately for a name that began with "sa". The cherry blossoms in full bloom outside the restaurant gave her an idea. "Sakura! Uh…Hikari Sakura!" she tried to stop herself from gagging at the incredibly girly name.

"Well, nice to meet you, Hikari-san! My name is Higurashi Kagome." Kagome grinned, extending her hand.

"Oh please, call me Sakura!" Sango added a little tee-hee to add to the girly façade. _Oh GOD make it end already…_

"All right, call me Kagome!" Kagome laughed.

"I'll be right back with a surprise meal for the two lovebirds!" Sango winked and scurried off.

"Thank you!" Kagome called after her. _Good to have another friend. Someone who won't constantly talk to me about how depressed Inuyasha is and how I really need to forgive him and all that crap. Sakura seems like a very nice person. _

It was then that Kagome noticed that Hojo was flat out unconscious.

"God, kill me now." Sango growled as Ayame cheerily curled her hair.

"Oh, come on, Sa-ku-ra! We need to make you girlier!" Ayame exclaimed as she bounced one of the chocolate-brown curls.

"Call me that again, and you die a slow and painful death." Sango growled.

"Oh, Sango!" Ayame laughed as she poked Sango's side, making her squeak against her will.

"Mffmffmfmfmfm!"

"Sorry, what was that, Miroku?" Ayame asked as she leaned in.

"MFFMFFMFMFMFM!" Miroku cried louder.

"I think he said, 'I need to touch a girl's ass'. Either that, or 'On the root beer float I'll pass'. It's hard to tell." Ayame shrugged as the tied-up-and-duct-taped-Miroku sighed.

"Shaddup, Miroku. You nearly blew all our covers back there, and we can't risk it again. We need to see if anything…you know…is going to happen." Inuyasha growled. _Perverted little cretin._ Sango thought wistfully.

Suddenly, with a desperate cry from Kagome, everyone shot out of their chairs.

"Hojo! Hojo! Are you okay? Hojo!" Kagome was crying, trying to shake the boy awake. She sighed in relief when his eyes fluttered open.

"Ka-Kagome?" Hojo murmured.

"I'm right here! Are you okay? What happened? Do you need anything?" Kagome asked desperately, pressing a soaked napkin to his forehead.

Hojo was dizzy. Hojo was a little whacked out.

He was also slightly disoriented.

"What happened?" Kouga hissed as he watched the two in the booth.

"I think my screaming at that idiot monk over there caused him to black out." Sango whispered sheepishly.

"Good job, Sango." Inuyasha grinned, although his grin was slowly fading as Kagome and Hobo got closer and closer.

"What's happening?" Ayame asked worriedly, slyly moving closer to Kouga out of fear and without him noticing.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed. They weren't…they couldn't…no…

Hojo's vision cleared to find a gorgeous and slightly frazzled Kagome sitting right in front of him. Her chocolate orbs glittered with worry, and he was reminded why he loved her.

"Hojo? Are you okay?" Kagome asked, gently touching his cheek.

Inuyasha growled as Kagome-HIS Kagome-touched Hobo in such a tender way. He clenched his fists in memory of the past.

Hojo smiled slyly as, in one move, he whipped his arm around Kagome's waist and plopped her into his lap, his arms enclosing her in a dangerously close and tender embrace. "Thank you for worrying about me." He whispered sensually into her ear.

Shivers ran down Kagome's spine, a delicate blush staining her cheeks.

"H-Hojo…"

Sango and Kouga held Inuyasha's wrists behind his back so he wouldn't go and mutilate the boy now holding Kagome in such a protective way, though Kouga himself was trying just as hard not to destroy him himself.

"I feel like I should thank you." Hojo murmured, his hands tracing torturous lines all over Kagome's lithe frame.

'N-no, it's r-really nothing." Kagome stuttered, her mind going blank as Hojo maneuvered his hands.

"Oh come on. What do you want?" he asked, licking the shell of her ear.

Kagome froze, fear overtaking her body.

She couldn't do it.

Not like this.

Not with him.

"Let me go!" Inuyasha growled in pure anger, rage pulsing through his entire system. That Hobo was about to die.

"No, Inuyasha! Think of Kagome!" Ayame begged.

Inuyasha froze for a second. But he shook his head a second later. "Kagome loves me…" he whispered to himself, as if of reassurance. "Besides…" he added louder, "I won't hit _her_."

"I can think of plenty of things to do." Hojo murmured, planting a chaste kiss upon Kagome's right cheek.

Kagome looked away, all thoughts erased except for one name.

"Come on, love." Hojo urged, grasping Kagome's chin and turning her to face him. "Look at me."

Sango watched with pleading eyes. _Please, Kagome! I can't hold Inuyasha much longer!_

"H-Hojo, are you…are you feeling okay?" Kagome dared to ask. She couldn't meet his eyes. Something was holding her back.

"Wonderful, now that I have you in my arms." Hojo hissed sensually against her neck as he kissed it three times.

Kagome gasped in pain. Or was it lust?

Most likely fear.

_I can't watch this! Please, Kagome! Knock him out or Inuyasha kills him! _Ayame thought desperately, her hands gripping Kouga's shoulders. He didn't remove them.

Tiring, and knowing what he really wanted to taste, Hojo sat up. "Look at me, Kagome."

Kagome squeezed her eyes shut. _Make it stop!_ She begged. To one individual in particular.

"Kagome." Hojo snapped.

Accidentally, Kagome looked up.

Timid eyes met catlike hunger.

Both leaned in, one for the kiss, the other out of force.

_KAGOME!!!!!_ Inuyasha screamed mentally. Dammit!

"I love you." Hojo whispered against Kagome's petal-soft lips.

_SAVE ME, INUYASHA!!!!!! _Kagome cried internally. This couldn't be happening!

Hojo pressed fully against Kagome's lips, and Kagome lost all consciousness. She slipped into a black dream, where Inuyasha was not there to save her.

Blood trickled slowly out of Kagome's mouth.

Inuyasha's blood pulsed. He was such an idiot. Why hadn't he realized it earlier? As soon as that idiot Hobo creep regained consciousness, a demon possessed him. And not an ordinary one, a pretty damn strong one. He had smelled the scent somewhere before…but, where?

In all his thoughts, Inuyasha missed the kiss until the sickeningly sweet scent of Kagome's blood drifted up his nostrils.

"KAGOME!" Inuyasha screamed, wrenching himself from his friends' arms as he ripped Hojo's body from Kagome's small form. She started falling back, and almost hit the hard tiled floor when graceful hands were there to hold her. They wrapped around Kagome's waist protectively, and two tears found their way down the face of the hands' owner.

Inuyasha looked up and froze.

Sango, Ayame, Kouga, and Miroku all whispered the same name as Inuyasha spoke it aloud.

"Kikyou?"

**Ooh, things are getting pretty steamy. Granted, it wasn't exactly what you guys might've wanted for the steamy category, but oh well. THAT stuff will come later~ ;)**

**Yeah, and Kikyou's back. I can see the faces of all the Kikyou haters out there. I'm sorry! Really! **

**Until Hojo was possessed, this was a pretty fun chapter to write. Sango being girly…Inuyasha and Kouga being jealous…and even some AyaKoug! Wooh! **

**So…reviews and any guesses of who/what possessed Hojo and what exactly did he do to Kagome? **

**Love ya all and the dream chapter for MKXB might be up tonight. You know, if I finish that damned English essay outline…grr…**


	14. Author's Note pt IV

***sniffle* Man, guys, I don't know what to say! I got so much good stuff from you guys for "The Gangster's Girlfriend", so I feel so loved!**

…**unfortunately, on that cheery note, in about 45 minutes I will be on a plane flying to North Carolina for two weeks, so unless I can abduct my mom's computer now and then, no updates until the 14****th****, most likely. **

**I'm so sorry guys, especially since you seem to adore my new story, but I promise you, I WILL update on the 14****th**** if it kills me! (Although I really hope it doesn't…)**

**Again guys, I love you and thank you so so so much for all the positive feedback! **

**See you all on the 14****th****! **

**~August**


	15. Chapter 12: What?

**AN: Well, here I am, back from North Carolina, and really missing having the ocean as my backyard. Although it is nice to get back to writing. Boy, did I need that vacation. It was like, I totally cleared my mind of formal writing. It's such an deliciously evil feeling : )**

**Music was songs in chipmunk version. Don't question. I'm in a chipmunk mood right now.**

**DISCLAIMER: I'll give you three guesses to guess what I'm about to type. And the first two don't count. I do not own anything but my storyline. **

**CHAPTER 11:**

"_KAGOME!" Inuyasha screamed, wrenching himself from his friends' arms as he ripped Hojo's body from Kagome's small form. She started falling back, and almost hit the hard tiled floor when graceful hands were there to hold her. They wrapped around Kagome's waist protectively, and two tears found their way down the face of the hands' owner. _

_ Inuyasha looked up and froze. _

_ Sango, Ayame, Kouga, and Miroku all whispered the same name as Inuyasha spoke it aloud. _

_ "Kikyou?"_

"Wha…what are you doing…here?" Inuyasha asked nervously. His words barely came out, his voice barely audible.

Kikyou looked up, and Inuyasha was taken aback by the cold hatred that coursed through her eyes. "Why should I have to explain to someone who couldn't protect my sister when I entrusted her to him for three years?" she hissed.

Inuyasha bit back the urge to retort that Kagome was the one who had broken up with him in the first place, although…technically…it was kind of his fault in the first place…

"Are you doing better, Kikyou-sama?" Miroku asked tentatively as he stood, walking over to the booth with Sango and Ayame following nervously.

"Obviously, or I wouldn't be standing here before you. It's not me we should be worried about anyway," she turned her sharp glare to a certain hanyou, "it's Kagome."

"Well, of course, but…I'm sure we're all wondering how you knew where to find us." Miroku added slyly as he moved closer to the supposedly unsuspecting Kikyou, causing a warning growl from a certain taijiya.

"Touch me, you lecherous lump, and it'll be you in a mangled pile on the floor instead of that ridiculous schoolboy." Kikyou snapped, referring to Hojo, who was still a motionless heap beneath the booth.

"See, you stupid monk, I am not the only one who doesn't enjoy it." Sango snapped.

"Exactly, you should have some morals, you are only human." Kikyou added.

The girls' eyes met and all was silent for a few moments.

"We should hang out sometime." Sango inferred.

"Agreed." Kikyou implied, and the ladies shook on it.

"_Ahem_." Inuyasha coughed.

"Fine. I suppose I have no other choice but to explain my presence here." Kikyou sighed, gently picking up her sister and placing her in a separate bench, curled up comfortably. She snatched a nearby napkin and dabbed at the blood staining Kagome's face. Four sets of eyes watched the miko with admiration.

"The doctors released me from the hospital only today. They told me to take it easy and to avoid any suspicious looking persons who might try to impale me again. (Inuyasha winced at this) I walked home alone. Nothing much happened on the way home, although I did come across two presents for my dear sister. (Ayame furrowed her brows at this, presents found on the street?) Though now," she glanced warily at Inuyasha, "she may not be able to see them in time."

"In time? Don't tell me one of them…" Inuyasha couldn't finish his sentence without gulping.

"Alive, yes. Don't worry, Inuyasha, I'm sure Kagome will still place you as the number one pet in her heart. (A growl from the hanyou) Anyway, I came home to find Mother sitting alone, reading. At least," Kikyou paused, biting her lower lip to keep it from trembling, "that's what I assumed when I first saw her. From behind."

"Is Hatori-san all right?" Sango asked worriedly, almost not wanting to hear the answer.

"When Mother didn't reply to any of my conversation, I dared to remove the book from her hands. I did not mean to remove her hands with it." Kikyou sighed.

Ayame, Sango, and Miroku stared at the miko in pure horror. Inuyasha flexed his claws. "Let me guess: she crumbled before your eyes." He sighed.

Kikyou nodded. "I was afraid to think, or do much of anything, really. So, I decided to look around the house. That was when I noticed that Kagome was not there. Upon looking further, I found a note. It was in Mother's handwriting, explaining she had gone out and that if I happened to be released in her absence, that Kagome was on a date with some boy from her school. (Cue Inuyasha growling) The note was in the trash. I was confident Mother was still alive and safe, at least for a little while, but something told me Kagome would not have such luck. So I decided that if this schoolboy was a gentleman, he would let Kagome choose the place to be. And Kagome, I figured, would pick this place because it's been her favorite dinner since she was a child and she brought Inuyasha here many a time. Correct, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha nodded, looking away with a light blush staining his cheeks.

"Unfortunately, I seemed to have arrived a tad late." Kikyou sighed, sweeping Kagome's bangs away from her face before letting them fall back in place.

A moment of silence passed, the restaurant having been cleared as soon as things started getting strange, the cooks leaving with the customers.

"Well, now that that mess has been cleared up, how about we figure out exactly what happened to Hobo, hm?" Inuyasha growled throatily as he picked up the misshapen Hojo from the floor by his collar.

"It was a bit strange for him to start out so sweet and then become such a monster." Sango sighed, secretly wishing for a certain monk to be that sweet to her. The monster she could do without, she saw it every day.

"Not to mention terrifying." Ayame squeaked, poking Hojo's cheek like he was some kind of new discovered animal.

"It was Naraku." Kikyou interjected, scaring the living daylights out of all of them as she just appeared by Inuyasha.

"Nara-who?" Ayame asked, as much confused as the next person.

"The demon that tricked and attacked me that day in the alley was called Naraku. He specializes in shape-shifting into his victim's most desired and trusted form." Kikyou explained tiredly.

Inuyasha sighed. Not only was Kagome's most desired and trusted form now Hobo, but Kikyou's most desired and trusted form was him. Maybe he should consider switching sisters…no, he couldn't be thinking like that. Him and Kikyou…it was a thing of the past, nothing more. Right?

"But, what on earth does he want with the Higurashi's?" Sango asked, starting to feel a little more frightened than she would like to be, as her voice squeaked a little on the last syllable of "Higurashi's". Miroku caught this and moved a little closer to Sango, but in a more protective way than a lustful. Sango blushed when she realized this.

"That, I am not yet sure of. It would make sense if he just had troubles with one of us, but going out of his way to torture both me and Kagome, it must have something to do with someone we both care about very much." Kikyou figured.

"Wait, wait, wait. So what you're saying is that this Naraku creep has the nerve to go after both you and Kagome to get back at someone who you both are involved with?" Inuyasha asked angrily.

"Most likely." Was all Kikyou said as she ripped a tablecloth from a nearby table and settled it over her sister's unconscious form.

"What a terrible way to get revenge." Sango murmured. Miroku just nodded slowly.

"I wonder…" Ayame began as she studied Hojo more carefully.

"That's new." Inuyasha snorted, causing a glare from Sango. Only after she finished snickering herself, of course.

"I wonder if it's not so much a want of revenge on a dear friend of Kikyou and Kagome's as the relationship the sisters have with that person." Ayame pondered, opening and closing Hojo's eyes.

Everyone (except Kikyou, of course) froze. Many eyes turned towards Ayame in disbelief. "A-Ayame?" Sango asked tentatively, stepping towards her friend. "You're not possessed by Naraku now, are you?"

Ayame looked at her friend inquisitively. "What made you think that?"

"You should know what." Inuyasha replied blandly, though he was completely taken aback by Ayame's remark as well.

It took almost a full minute for Ayame to understand why everyone was treating her so strangely. "What? Aren't I allowed to say something intelligent every now and then?" she pouted, crossing her arms stubbornly.

"Never mind that. What Ayame said…it makes more sense." Kikyou decided.

"Now that you mention it, it does." Miroku put in, tired of having not said anything up till then. "I mean, Naraku is a demon, and a nasty one at that. If this mystery person is indeed important to both girls, a very dear friend, perhaps he feels angry about this love, this friendship. Maybe, he even feels…a little jealous."

Suddenly everyone, except one, seemed to understand who this person was. Kikyou averted her gaze as Miroku, Sango, and Ayame all faced Inuyasha with decided looks gracing their faces.

Inuyasha blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

Before finally asking his burning question.

"What?"

**Ah, yes. Another cliffhanger. Kind of. Though, not so bad as the last one. I do hope some burning questions were answered in this chapter, and yes, Mama Higurashi is still alive. I don't know if I made that obvious enough.**

**I wonder if any of you can guess what Kikyou's two presents are for Kagome. I'm curious to hear your guesses. **

**MKXB and TGG should be updated tomorrow, right now I need sleep. I'm still used to the time being two hours ahead of what it is… ^^;**

**Anyway, see you all tomorrow! (In a sense…)**

**~August out**

**P.S. ARGH! I forgot to put Kouga in! I totally forgot he was with everyone else so..um…imagine he ran out to get…help…of some kind…ugh…I need to stop making Kouga just disappear…**


	16. Chapter 13: Darkness From Within: Pt I

**AN: You know what? I'm not even going to try to explain in this little intro paragraph as to why I haven't updated in a million years. All I can say? I'm really really REALLY sorry, like, groveling-at-your-feet sorry. Anyway, tonight I shall upload at least two chapters of a lot of stuff, so be ready for that guys!**

**I wrote this chapter in school, so I didn't have music…**

**DISCLAIMER: If you're going to guess that I don't own the characters, you must be psychic. Cuz I don't.**

**CHAPTER 12:**

"What?" Inuyasha asked.

"Nevermind, explaining that to Inuyasha is like lecturing Miroku on sexually transmitted diseases. It doesn't work." Sango sighed as she held aforementioned monk's wrist behind his back.

"Well, either way, we should probably move to a more covert place to discuss this. I can already see those white-coated men walking up to claim us." Ayame hissed urgently.

"Wait, so they would take us away for talking about an evil force so great it could destroy the whole fucking earth, but they wouldn't for the majority of us being demons?" Inuyasha pondered carefully.

"Oi, hanyou! Get your species right, dog-breath!" Kouga snorted. Ayame, meanwhile, was busy drooling over his bravery for insulting Inuyasha.

Kikyou felt it unnecessary to correct Inuyasha's math and instead decided to retrieve Kagome from her resting place.

Only when she reached the table they had left Kagome Higurashi at, the table was empty.

She was gone.

"It is done, Naraku." Came the stern voice of a young woman at the end of the black hallway.

"Excellent. Where is she now?" A gravelly man's voice replied.

"At her shrine, of course. She's inside the well-house." The woman responded.

"Hmph. Very well." The man called Naraku arose from his black throne.

"Pardon me, Narakue, but why, exactly, aren't we allowed to just kill the girl yet?"

The man chuckled. "Oh, my silly Kagura, I thought we went over this already."

The woman, Kagura, shook her head. "I don't recall it."

Naraku gritted his teeth and Kagura winced, preparing for the worst. But a smile returned to Naraku's handsome face and he chuckled.

"She is an important part of our plan, my dear. The jewel shards planted inside her through my kiss should start responding precisely 12 hours after she awakes."

Kagura's face remained emotionless, though her eyes narrowed. "Yes, my Lord." She responded, bowing slightly before leaving.

Naraku smirked, holding a lilac pearl in his hand. The pearl was incomplete, shards missing here and there, but deep within the gentle purple gem, a dark light pulsed, threatening to overtake the beauty.

"Soon, Inuyasha. Soon, our century long fight…will be over."

**Wow, this chapter is a lot shorter than I thought it was…GAH I'M SORRY! Anyway, I have to go to an audition now, so the double update will be complete after I come back…**

**If I'm not too jello-ey. **

***ahem* Anyway, I hope you like it. I'll put an author's note as a separate chapter to explain a few things and yeah…so sorry about this chapter's shortness, I'll hopefully make up for it in a few hours.**

**Please review and thank you! (and wish me luck)**

**~August**


	17. Chapter 14: Darkness From Within Pt II

**AN: Yeahhahahaha! I am back in business, baby! I love these moments when I have a spur of inspiration that just keeps twirling!**

**Sorry for the shortness of the last chapter, and if you noticed, the last chapter was titled with "Part I" in the title. Whenever that happens in one of my stories, I shall include a short summary before the next chapter. I've always wanted to do that. Keheheheh.**

**I didn't have music for this chapter, 60% I wrote at school today and the other 40% I was waiting for this call, so I had to have no sounds but the keyboard distracting me. **

**DISCLAIMER: Guess what? I don't own the characters or stuff! I own my stoyline thingy! Wooh!**

**CHAPTER 13 (Unlucky number? You decide :)**

_Kagome and Inuyasha are supposedly broken up, although it's pretty obvious Inuyasha still loves Kagome. Or does he? Kagome's elder sister Kikyou seems to have some kind of plan to woo her sister's ex into her heart. And now, an enemy from centuries ago is intruding on the lovers' drama, starting with rendering Kagome unconscious through a single kiss. Inuyasha & Co. left Kagome alone at a booth, but the decision proved unwise as Kagome has gone missing. _

_Who is this mysterious enemy? Who is he really after?_

_Guess you'll just have to keep reading to find out._

"She's gone!" Kikyou practically screamed, and she was quickly joined by the others.

"Th-that's impossible, she was just here!" Ayame stuttered.

"No one came into or out of the café since we've been here. Kagome was out cold, so she herself couldn't have left easily, we would have heard her." Sango reasoned.

Kouga started growling. "Maybe not, but there's definitely some scent here besides fried food and my lovely Kagome's."

Inuyasha temporarily ignored Kouga's claims about Kagome being his and sniffed the air. "Unfortunately, Kouga's right," his eyes narrowed, "only I know who's scent it is. It's that damned Naraku, he was here."

"Hold up, Inuyasha," Miroku interrupted, "don't forget that Naraku had his hands all over Kagome, his scent could have been just lingering around her." Silence fell over the room. Miroku had a point.

"Wait a moment," Kikyou said suddenly, "you guys!" she was indicating Kouga, Ayame, and more specifically, Inuyasha. "You didn't know that Hojo was possessed by Naraku until after things went wrong, right?"

"Wait, are we supposed to reply with 'wrong' or 'right'?" Kouga asked, confused.

Inuyasha ignored him, as usual. "Right."

"That means that Naraku was concealing his scent behind Hojo's." Kikyou pointed out.

Sango seemed to be the only one to understand. "I get it," she started, "that means that the fact that Naraku's scent is mingled in with Kagome's over here…"

"Is because Naraku appeared while we were chatting over there, grabbed Kagome, and escaped without a trace." Kikyou finished.

"If that's true, then Kagome could be anywhere." Ayame murmured.

"But the most logical place would be Naraku's lair." Inuyasha pointed out, "Kidnapping her would mean using her as bait. Of course I would come after Kagome, which would give Naraku a chance to defeat me." He flexed his claws in anger.

Everyone nodded, that made the most sense.

"Hold up, Inuyasha," Kikyou stopped him, "do you even know where Naraku's supposed lair is?"

Inuyasha growled a bit before shaking his head.

"I thought not. If Naraku so blatantly wanted you to come rescue Kagome at his lair, wouldn't he have made the location of his lair obvious to you? It doesn't help him if he has your bait and you don't know where he is. So why would he do that?"

"That would mean that Kagome's in a much more obvious place." Ayame said.

"Yeah, okay, but why would Naraku kidnap Kagome and just dump her somewhere where we can easily find her?" Kouga asked.

"It is a puzzler, so maybe he did something to Kagome to work at his advantage. We'll have to be careful when we find her." Kikyou sighed.

"Now, where's an obvious place for Kagome to be?" Sango asked, itching to get out of her waitress uniform.

Silence, once again, took over the small café. Then, Miroku had an idea. "What about the shrine?"

Smiles lit up everyone's faces. Of course, the famous Higurashi Shrine would be an obvious place for Kagome Higurashi to show up.

"To the shrine!" everyone shouted together.

In the shadow of a nearby tree, a small girl with a mirror looked up at Kagura. "They appear to be smarter than Naraku planned for." She said in a robotic tone.

Kagura smirked. "So it would seem. That, at least, will make defeating them a whole lot more enjoyable. Come, Kanna, Naraku will want to hear of this. We should stop by that well-house first to make sure everything else is going according to plan."

The small girl with white hair, Kanna, nodded.

Kagura summoned a large feather out of a small one from her hair, and the two were off into the sky.

**Okay, so maybe it wasn't as long as I originally intentioned, but I have to get to bed. I have a callback tomorrow, eeeeeeeee!**

**So excited!**

**Okay, so in the next chapter maybe, the question about the two gifts Kikyou got for Kagome shall be answered, I know you all are eager to see what they are, and thank you for all your guesses, they was fun to read :3**

**Okay, I'm off to bed, good night everyone and thank you and…other stuff!**

**~August**


	18. Chapter 15: Darkness From Within Pt III

**AN: Bleaaaaaaah…I really intended to update earlier, I swear I did…but this chapter gave me such bad writer's block T.T**

**Anyhoo, finally today I figured out how to pull this whole thing together, and truthfully, I ish excited :3**

**No music since I was writing a majority of this chapter in study hall and in a coffee shop while my mom was in a meeting. It was amusing to see the person my mom was meeting with be all amazed at how fast of a writer I am…which, of course, makes my writing terribly illegible .**

**DISCLAIMER: *tap dances* I don't own the characters, oh no I don't, oh no I don't, yeah!**

**P.S.: I'm still having trouble with borderlines, so yeah…**

**CHAPTER 15:**

_**(Recap time! Yaaaaaaay!)**_

_So Naraku, claiming to be Inuyasha's ancient enemy, has made his grand appearance. Not only did he steal Kagome's consciousness with a single kiss, but he appears to have kidnapped Kagome and taken her somewhere…_

_Inuyasha & Co. (bahahah, I love calling them that) think they know where Kagome may be, but they also think Naraku did something to her…but what?_

_And who are the two ladies who seem to be Naraku's henchmen-er, women?_

_And what ARE the two gifts Kikyou found for her sister?_

_Keep reading to see!_

**(BOOOOOOORDEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER )**

"Naraku." Kagura called out as she entered the dark room.

"I see you've returned from your little mission, Kagura. And Kanna?" Naraku's raspy voice came from the other side of the room.

"She is with me. Kanna, show him your mirror." Kagura told the girl with white hair.

Kanna stepped forward, holding a small, circular mirror to her chest. She stepped closer to Naraku, and soon, a swirling image began to appear in the mirror's surface. Then, out of the mix of colors, Inuyasha & Co. became visible. They were hastily making their way to the Higurashi shrine.

An eerie smile crept along Naraku's face as he chuckled. "So, they appear to be smarter than I intended. Ah well, Kagura, you know what to do, I presume?"

Kagura nodded, her face expressionless. "Yes, Naraku, I understand what I am to do." She placed a hand on Kanna's shoulder, and soon they were both on a large lilac feather, flying out of the dark room.

Naraku was holding the incomplete light violet jewel in his hand again. He stared into it's depths, and the dark heart of the jewel pulsed and seemed to grow larger, capturing more of the light. He smiled. "Soon. Soon all will be as it should be."

**(BOOOOOORDEEEER LIIIIIINEEEE PT. 2!)**

It was sunset by the time Inuyasha and the others reached the Higurashi shrine. They were greeted by Souta as he came running out of the house. (I forgot if I made Mrs. Higurashi like, disappeared or not…anyway, she is back now and caring for Kagome. So…yeah…) "Inu-nii! (I haven't seen InuYasha in so long, I don't know if Souta actually calls him that…oh, and Inu-nii basically means Big Brother Inuyasha) Come quickly! Kagome isn't doing so well!" Souta cried.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed as he and everyone else followed Souta into the Higurashi's household.

They found Kagome lying on the floor with her mom placing a cool cloth to her forehead.

"Kagome!" Kikyou cried as she raced to her sister.

"Where have you been, Kikyou?" Mrs. Higurashi snapped.

"Sorry, Mom." Was all Kikyou could manage as she slowly twirled a strand of Kagome's hair around her fingers. "I'm sorry, Kagome."

The rest of the group gathered around.

"It was the strangest thing." Mrs. Higurashi began, expecting the group to be wanting an explanation. "I knew Kagome was on a date with that nice Hojo boy (Inuyasha and Kouga growled a little at this), and when I went out to the well house, I noticed the top of the well was open. When I looked inside, I noticed Kagome lying down there. I have no clue how she got there, and she has yet to wake up."

The group was silent. They, too, had no clue how Kagome had ended up there, except that an angry sorcerer freak guy who was bent on power-thirsty revenge had placed her there.

Inuyasha glared at Kagome's closed eyes. Naraku, that bastard, had done this to her. He would pay for playing silly games like that. Oh, would he pay…

**(BOOOOOOORDEEEEEER LIIIIIIINE PT. 3!)**

Kagome slept on through the night. Her friends took turns watching her, waiting for her to wake.

It wasn't until the sunlight first seeped through the windows did Kagome move. Inuyasha was watching her intently, and when Kagome's eyes fluttered open, revealing a pair of beautiful blue orbs he knew so well, Inuyasha sat Kagome up and threw his arms around her.

"I-Inuyasha…" Kagome squeaked.

"I was so scared…" Inuyasha whispered, "I was so scared that damned bastard would do to you what he did to Kikyou. I can't lose you, Kagome. I just can't."

Kagome's eyes widened. Had Inuyasha told that to Kikyou when she was in the hospital? Something told her he hadn't.

A smile crept along her face.

It was for that reason that the plan would go much more smoothly than last time.

**(BORDER LINE PART 4!...Wow, that last part was a lot shorter typed than it was written in my spiral notebook…yeesh…)**

Kikyou's eyes fluttered open as small golden rays of sunlight broke through her haunting dreams.

She groaned as she slowly sat up, stretching her arms out. Carefully, without waking the others, Kikyou crept into the bathroom and turned the sink on. She splashed water on her face in a vain attempt to wash the sleep from her eyes. After turning the sink off, Kikyou glanced up at her reflection in the mirror as she rubbed her face with a towel (she's such a multi-tasker). She stared straight back at her twin trapped in the mirror. Inuyasha would be downstairs guarding Kagome now. Kikyou clenched her fists as images from her dream flashed before her eyes.

"This is for the best." Kikyou murmured. To whom, she didn't know. Maybe it was to her twin in the mirror, to convince her not to look as scared as the real girl in front of her.

**(BORDER LINE )**

Naraku posed leisurely on his blackened throne, the pale purple jewel resting in his right palm. The dark clouds inside had swirled into human-like shapes, projecting the screen currently at the Higurashi shrine.

He scowled when he checked Kagura's and Kanna's current location. Those useless reincarnations had stopped _again_. At this rate, they wouldn't make it to the shrine in time.

Naraku placed the jewel on the velvet armrest of his throne as he stood up. He really would rather not make a personal appearance again, but he supposed he should never sent a few reincarnations to do the real guy's job.

He glanced back at the jewel one last time, and smirked when he saw Inuyasha's shape throw his arms around Kagome's.

Amongst Kagome's black clouded form, three red diamonds glowed at the nape of her neck.

**(OH YEAH OH YEAH THIS IS A BORDER LINE, UH HUH UH HUH)**

_It seems Naraku has some weird plan up his sleeve for getting his revenge on Inuyasha, but what it is, well, we'll just have to wait and see. Does it have to do with Kagome, with the red diamonds at her neck and the way she grinned when thinking of some sort of "plan"? But what if the plan is really only to get back at her ex-boyfriend and sister, for making out behind her back? And what is the dream that Kikyou had that had her so shaken up, thinking about Inuyasha and Kagome?_

_And when in heaven's name will we ever figure out what Kikyou's gifts for her sister are?_

_Look for Darkness From Within pt. IV to find out :3_

**(LAST BUT NOT LEAST, ANOTHER BORDER LINE!)**

**AN: Wow, that chapter so did not turn out the way I thought it would. For one thing, it's a whole lot shorter than I intended it to be T.T**

**I promise that you'll find out the gifts in the next chapter, really I do. Thanks for all the guesses, they were fun to read ^.^**

**I'm sorry to say you can't expect any updates this coming week (which is really nothing new, considering it's me we're talking about) because I have an essay due this Friday that I really should be working on instead. That's not to say I actually will do it all this week though…I'll probably make some ridiculous move like waiting till Thursday night. Yup. That's me all right.**

**Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW and thanks for reading!**

**~August**


	19. Chapter 16: Be Safe

**AN: TRIPLE UPDATE. BOO. YAH. (IF I CAN GET THE OTHER CHAPTERS UP RELATIVELY SOON, THAT IS.)**

**NOTE: IT'S BEEN A FREAKIN' LONG TIME SINCE MY LAST UPDATE. IT WOULD NOT BE A BAD IDEA TO RE-READ SOME STUFF TO REFRESH YOUR MEMORIES. KK?**

***ahem* anyway…I'm really sorry guys. I can't apologize enough for my seemingly-being-dead-ness. Life got in the way again, as it likes to do. I swear I tried to update numerous times, but sometimes I've gotten sick, sometimes I've just run out of ideas, yeah it's been complicated and crazy. But I absolutely promise this time I'll try to be more consistent in my updates. I will not allow life to sidetrack me again! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!**

**Music was "Soul Sister" by Train. Love love love LOVE that song.**

**DISCLAIMER: **

**CONTESTANT: Yes, I'll take Disclaimers for 500 points.**

**AUGUST: Excellent choice! Here's your answer: These characters do not belong to me, I only own the storyline/parts of it.**

**CONTESTANT: What is a disclaimer for InuYasha fanfictions.**

**AUGUST: Yaaaaaay!**

**(I'm running out of ideas for disclaimers…now I'm just having fun)**

**CHAPTER 16:**

_**(Reeeecaaaaaaap)**_

_Just go and re-read some other chapters. Everything will make a heck of a lot more sense if you do. _

_But seriously guys. What ARE the gifts Kikyou got Kagome?_

_WILL WE EVER KNOW?_

**(THIS IS A BORDER LINE. AIN'T IT PURTY?)**

Kikyou stood at the top of the stairs hesitantly. Her right hand rested at the top of the railing, shivering. She thought she heard whispering downstairs.

She didn't know why she was hesitating. Why should she be afraid of what she would see downstairs?

Kikyou clenched her right hand into a fist to stop the shaking and gritted her teeth to keep from screaming. _No,_ she told herself, _I__have__to__stop__being__so__selfish.__Why__shouldn__'__t__Inuyasha__be__worried__about__Kagome?__They__did__date__for__like,__a__year.__Relax,__Kikyou.__You__can__worry__about__your__past__with__Inu-_

Kikyou squeaked when something bumped her from behind. She whipped around to find the Higurashi's cat, Buyo, with the rest of Inuyasha & Co. (minus Inuyasha and Kagome) behind him.

"I see you had the pleasure of waking before the cat found us." Miroku laughed slightly.

Kikyou glanced at Sango questioningly, but she was too busy grabbing Miroku and dragging him away to be "punished" for touching her again.

The one with the red hair-Kikyou never could remember her name-noticed Kikyou's confusion. "Buyo got in our room and woke us all up." She explained with a giggle.

Kikyou nodded. Not a second later, Kouga was in Kikyou's face. "How is my darling? Is she all right? Tell me she's all right!" Kikyou winced when wolf spit hit her face.

"I don't know." She whispered, running her hand over her face and flinging the spit in another direction.

"I guess we'll just have to head downstairs and check." Sango sighed, back from monk-punishing. Kikyou noted that the lump besides Sango looked vaguely Miroku-like.

Although the plan had been decided on, nobody moved. There was an unspoken fear that settled amongst the group. If Kagome was awake and well, then their worries would evaporate just like that. However, if they went downstairs to find Kagome still asleep, well…nobody wanted to think about that.

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm going downstairs to check on my Kagome." Kouga decided. The rest of the group shuffled after him down the stairs.

**(ANOTHER BORDER LINE. *DEEP BREATH* YAY.)**

"KAGOME!" Ayame squealed as soon as she realized her friend was up and breathing. Sango, though equally excited, winced upon witnessing Ayame tackling Kagome to the floor.

"Careful, Ayame! She's probably pretty weak right now!" Sango chided as she peeled Ayame off of Kagome.

"It's fine, really." Kagome laughed as she carefully sat back up.

"I'm sorry…I'm just so glad you're okay!" Ayame concluded.

Sango nodded. "Me too."

Kouga was next in line to greet the much-loved girl. "Are you sure you're all right, Kagome? That stupid mutt-face didn't do anything to you, did he? Because if he did, I swear to Kami I'll-" Kouga's speech was abruptly cut short by Inuyasha's fist to the wolf's face. "Shut the fuck up, you damn wolf." Inuyasha muttered.

Kagome flashed Inuyasha a gentle smile. "Inuyasha, it's fine. He was just worried."

Inuyasha shrugged upon being scolded by Kagome. "Keh. Whatever."

Kikyou narrowed her eyes. She was at the back of the large group, watching as one by one everyone came forward and hugged or said welcome back to Kagome. Something was wrong. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something was definitely amiss about her sister.

Kagome smiled at everyone in turn as they approached her. They were all so nice. She was beginning to enjoy all the attention when the girl at the back caught her eye. So. That was her, eh?

Kagome stood upon spying her sister. "Kikyou!" she exclaimed, acting a little too girly for Kikyou's liking as Kagome flung her arms around her sibling. Kikyou nervously laughed at the awkward hug and kept her smile plastered to her face as her sister pulled away. "It's _so_ good to see you again, Kikyou!" Kagome added with a smirk.

Kikyou shivered and stepped back from her sister. Something about the way Kagome's mocha colored eyes glinted dangerously when she pronounced her sister's name had her more than a little worried.

Kagome looked like she was about to hug her sister again when she froze mid-action. Kikyou stared at her in anticipation before Kagome flew back into action again. "Well, I'm going to head outside."

Every single soul in the room (minus Kikyou, who was already standing) leapt up to assist her outside, though Inuyasha was notable by her side first. "I"ll help you out." Kikyou flinched at the way Inuyasha ignored her so steadily and rushed to her sister, but she managed to brush it away before she did something incredulous.

Kagome laughed lightly before shoving Inuyasha off. "I'll be fine, I'm just going out for some air, you guys stay here and..." she paused, taking in everyone in the room before smiling, "…talk amongst yourselves."

Inuyasha looked skeptical, but backed away from her nonetheless, unknowingly drawing closer to Kikyou in the process. Pain shot through Kagome's eyes, but it was for such a fleeting moment that Kikyou, the one bearing witness to the action, could have easily imagined it.

Kagome waved cheerily before sauntering out of the house.

_Something__is__DEFINITELY__not__right._ Kikyou thought before turning to address the others. She might as well brief the rest of the group on the gifts (though she highly doubted Inuyasha would be pleased at all with one of them) she had gotten for Kagome. Nothing else to do, anyway.

***I****AM****NOW****GOING****TO****DO****AN****EXPERIMENT****BORDERLINE.****IF****THE****THING****BELOW****(IF****THERE****IS****A****THING****BELOW)****IS****AN****ACTUAL****BORDERLINE,****YOU****WON****'****T****HAVE****TO****READ****THESE****THINGS****ANYMORE.****WOOH!***

Kagome shuffled out of the shrine and when she was positive she was out of earshot of the group inside, she breathed a sigh of part relief and part exhaustion before plunking herself down in front of the Sacred Tree.

"Well done, Higurashi." The dark, scratchy bass voice greeted her almost instantaneously. Kagome carefully opened one eye to see an ominous shadow in front of her.

"I would have done better had I actually known more than two names out of that group of dorks." Kagome snapped, re-positioning herself so she was comfortable and turned away from the shadow-man.

"The others are not important. Only Inuyasha and Kikyou matter. Besides, you'll learn the other names soon enough, if you keep hanging around them insistently." The shadow-man mused.

Kagome sighed. "Yes, you told me that already. I just think the real reason behind the whole name mishap is that you don't remember their names. You can't even remember my name. It's Kagome, not," Kagome paused to imitate the shadow-man's scratchy bass, "Higurashi."

Shadow-man glared at Kagome, though it had little effect since Kagome was effectively ignoring him.

"So the girl was successful?" Kagome allowed herself to open an eye to inspect the owner of the new voice, a deep yet persuasive female's. Fortunately, she was more than a big shadow, and Kagome could make out her features. The woman was beautiful, but Kagome seriously doubted the woman had ever cracked a smile in her life.

"Yes, she was. Quite successful." The shadow-man muttered, still upset at Kagome's effective ignoring skills.

"Kagome! Are you okay?" the voice seemed to belong to that bouncy red-haired wolf demon that had attacked-er, _enthusiastically__tackled_-Kagome inside the shrine.

"Guess the mission's back in play." Kagome sighed as she stood and stretched. She was still exhausted from that lame exercise shadow-man had put her through earlier, before her arrival at the shrine. Kagome carefully nitpicked her way around shadow-man before beginning her striding towards the shrine-entrance.

"Keep a close watch on Inuyasha, Higurashi." Shadow-man warned as she passed him. "But especially-"

"Especially keep a close watch on Kikyou, I know, I know." Kagome sighed. "And my name's not Higurashi, it's _Kagome_." She was about to start walking again when a cold, pale hand grabbed her shoulder and whipped her around until she was face-to-face with officially the creepiest man Kagome had ever seen.

"And my name's not 'Shadow-man'. You forget so easily that your thoughts are my connection to what's going on where you are." The man hissed, his cool yet scratchy voice sending shivers down Kagome's spine. "Whatever you do, you must speak to me in your mind with what is happening. Otherwise, I don't know what's going on. And if I don't know what's going on, I might have to add another maiden's head to my castle wall."

Kagome flinched, but kept a steady hold on the man's gaze. "I thought you could see what was going on in that purple pearl you're always staring at."

The man's stare hardened on Kagome, and it took all of her willpower and pride to stay right where she was. "I can only see in the jewel when I have a strong mind connection with you. If you dare to try and mess anything up…" he left it an open threat, but Kagome got the hint.

"Fine. I understand. I'll be careful. I'll keep an eye on Inuyasha and a _very_ close eye on Kikyou. I just have two questions."

"Ask them now."

"What is my relationship with the hanyou, Inuyasha?"

Kagome could swear she saw a slight smirk form on the man's face as he answered. "You are, shall we say, star-crossed lovers."

Kagome's eyes narrowed a bit in confusion, So...did that mean they were together, or did it mean they weren't? Or did it mean they wanted to be together, or did it mean they had been together but had been pulled apart? Okay, so maybe all the confusion was really the definition of the term. "Star-crossed lovers" were together, but weren't. Fair enough.

"Your last question?"

"If your name isn't 'Shadow-man', as you say it isn't, what would you prefer to be called?"

There was that smirk again. "You may refer to me as Naraku."

Kagome nodded. "All righty then." After "Naraku" released her from his grip, Kagome began her trek again only to be stopped by his voice one last time.

"Do not fail me, Kagome."

Kagome smiled as she began her walk again, more confidently than before.

Maybe working for this Naraku wouldn't be as bad as she originally thought.

***BORDERLINE****EXPERIMENT****PART****2!***

Rin sighed in pure ecstasy as she inserted her own key into the lock in the door leading to Sesshomaru-sama's house. It had been the _perfect_ day. Kohaku had been so…nice. It was hard to believe he had tried to kill her once.

Rin shuddered slightly at the thought, but she pushed the memory to the back of her mind as she opened the white door.

The house was completely silent.

And completely dark.

Rin would be lying if she said she wasn't a little scared.

She fumbled around for a light switch as fast as she could, and she breathed a sigh of relief upon finding one. After the living room was lit, Rin felt a little better. It was odd though. She didn't remember Sesshomaru-sama telling her that he wouldn't be home that night. She looked around the room a little more before her eyes narrowed in confusion. There was a blatant red number one blinking on the phone's answering machine. Someone had actually called the house besides her all those months ago? Rin warily approached the machine and carefully pressed the button that would allow her to hear the message.

"_Rin?__Yes?__Hello?__"_ the voice was squeaky, obnoxious, and Rin wasn't looking forward to hearing more of it_.__ "__Answering__machine,__Sesshomaru-sama?__"_ Rin's eyes widened. If Sesshomaru-sama was there with the squeaky guy…why hadn't he taken over the message himself? She would have much rather listened to Sesshomaru's nonchalant voice delivering the message than the squeaky toy. Rin blushed and mentally chastised herself for that thought. _"__Well__all__right.__Ahem.__Rin,__I__regret__to__inform__you__that__due__to__an__urgent__call__of__business,__Sesshomaru-sama__will__not__be__at__home__for__a__few__days.__I__'__m__sorry__for__the__inconvenience__this__causes__you,__and__I-er,__we-hope__that__you__will__not__be__too__troubled__by__this.__"_ There was a pause, which allowed Rin to try and process this information. She wouldn't be able to see Sesshomaru-sama for a few days? She tried to imagine herself successfully living alone in the large and empty (not to mention dark) house. Without Sesshomaru-sama around… "Rin". Rin's thoughts were interrupted as the oh-so-wonderfully-familiar voice came on to speak directly to her. "Be safe, Rin."

Rin squeaked herself as she felt the tears of fright and loneliness pool and eventually flow down her cheeks as she sank to the floor.

"Be safe."

***BORDER****LINE****EXPERIMENT****PART****3!***

**AN: Phew! *cracks knuckles* I must have planned MONTHS on this chapter and I ended up improvising the majority of it in an hour or so. T.T**

**Anyway, I will get the other chapters up as soon as I can. I have a thing I have to go to tonight (no surprise there, right? Stupid life…getting in the way again…) and then I have a TON of crap I gotta do tomorrow and then it's back to school! However, any free time I have tomorrow I PROMISE will be spent on homework and updating. I figured I would update this one first since it's my most popular story (I love you guys. Have I mentioned that lately?)**

**Anyhoo, remember the gifts from Kikyou? Yeah? They…may or may not be in the next chapter…probably…God, I don't know.**

**So yup, that's about it, PLEASE REVIEW and I will see y'alls tomorrow!...or maybe later tonight…:3**

**~August, over and out!**


	20. Chapter 17: Mind Games

**AN: *sniffle* No reviews? Really? :(**

…**okay, okay, I know I deserve it. I mean, c'mon, not updating in ten hundred years…of course, right? Still…I is a depressed author now…**

**Oh well. I hope you guys understand what's happening…usually I get questions in reviews, but whatever…**

**So, if you're confused: Naraku kidnapped Kagome and has somehow managed to erase her memories. All she knows is that she works for Naraku. She has strict instructions to watch her "star-crossed" lover Inuyasha and her sister, Kikyou, for some unknown reason…**

**Sesshomaru has left Rin alone, although we don't know why…**

**And…I think that's about it.**

**So? Will we know what the gifts are in this chapter?**

**Probably not. **

**DISCLAIMER: Psh, owning characters is like, totally lame…okay it's really not, but I'm just a poor soul that doesn't own anything except my story ^^;**

**Oh, and evidently last chapter, there was some problems with the italics…my computer hates me…**

**CHAPTER 17:**

**(Sheesh, we've gotten this far and virtually nothing's happened. HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO BE?)**

"_Wanna go out with me?"_

_Kagome looked up from her book to see none other than the golden-eyed hanyou standing before her. "Excuse me?" she inquired._

"_You heard me. I've seen the way you look at me in class. And I thought, 'Why not? She's not that bad.' So, I'm asking you officially. Do you wanna go out with me?" Inuyasha smirked as he leaned against the girl's desk, gold eyes smoldering. _

_Kagome narrowed her eyes. "Okay, first of all, if I was staring at you, it was completely accidental. Maybe I was spacing out. Maybe I was trying to look out the window and you were in my way. I don't know. Either way, I was not intentionally staring. Second of all, I would hope that my potential boyfriend would ask me out without informing me that I was 'not that bad'. If you think that's the way to 'score a chick', as you males so vulgarly put it, you've got another thing coming. And last of all, I don't like you, I never have liked you, and I have no intention whatsoever of dating you. So scamper off to some other girl that might actually give a damn or back to whatever it is you were doing before you interrupted my reading. Either way, please let me get back to my book." When the hanyou refused to move, Kagome sighed. "Or at least let me leave to somewhere more peaceful and not as filled with idiots where I can read." She carefully stood, sliding her chair back from her desk and began stalking confidently to the door. Internally though, she was falling apart._

How did he find out that I was staring at him? Oh great, what if he totally knows how I feel now and wants to make a spectacle of it? My life is over….no, keep it together Kagome. Inuyasha can't know. He was just flirting (if that's what you could call it) because you were the only female in the room. Calm down. It meant nothing…he can't know…_Kagome's thoughts were that muddled of a mess, but they were interrupted as she reached the door. _

"_Playing hard to get, eh?" Inuyasha's call froze Kagome at the doorframe. Her heart was racing. "That's fine. But keep one thing in mind, wench." Kagome winced. Horrible nickname. "I will make you fall for me. Make no mistake about that."_

_Kagome's eyes widened. She stifled a laugh as she whirled around to face the hanyou. "Good luck with that!" she challenged before whipping back around and running down the school hallway before he could catch a glimpse of the huge smile spreading across her face. _

**NEW BORDER LINE. ZOMG.**

**:o0o:**

**OKAY. IT'S NOT EXACTLY A BORDER LINE. MOVING ON.**

Kagome's eyes shot open as she rolled off the bed before she could stop herself with a loud _thump_. "Ow…" she winced when she sat up on the hardwood floor beneath her. She inspected her surroundings. She was in her own room, or at least what she had discovered was her room the previous night.

Kagome gently placed a hand to her forehead. She felt fine. So it had been nothing more than a dream then.

"Kagome?" the girl jumped at the sound of her name. She looked up to see none other than Kikyou in her doorway, eyebrows raised. "Is everything…um…all right?"

Kagome blinked, realizing it must look strange to Kikyou to see her sister plopped awkwardly on the floor, bed covers partly wrapped around her.

Kagome laughed. "Aha, yeah…everything's, um…awesome!"

Kikyou still looked skeptical. "I heard a loud thump…"

"Oh that…um…that was…" Kagome then spotted the fat calico cat she had almost crushed in her fall. She grinned. "That was totally the cat! Yep, the cat…"

Kikyou continued to look skeptical. "Well all right…I've never heard Buyo do that before, but…never mind. Breakfast is ready, and we have to get to school." With that, Kikyou left the room.

Kagome let out a sigh of relief as she glanced at the obese cat. "So your name's Buyo, huh?"

He meowed in response.

"Well all right then." Kagome muttered as she stood, untangling herself from the covers of her bed before replacing them on her bed.

"_**Girl. What happened?"**_

"_So it's 'girl' now? And here I thought we were actually getting somewhere."_

"_**Don't change the subject. What happened? Your mind connection was fuzzy all night."**_

"_Interesting…"_

"_**What?"**_

"_Nothing. Nothing happened last night. Just…weird dream, that's all."_

Silence from Naraku's end. Kagome shrugged. She would have to get used to her mind being read by the creepy shadow guy, seeing as if she didn't she'd be hung on his wall like some hunting prize. She shuddered at the thought.

With that in mind, Kagome yawned, shuffling out of the bedroom and down the stairs for breakfast and then, school.

**:o0o:**

The sun was just beginning it's attempt to shed a little warmth on the cool morning when a man with neat and long silver hair began the tentative climb up the steps leading to a front door. He glanced skeptically at the house as he sauntered up to the door. He hesitated. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. On the other hand, what other choice did he have? She had to be kept safe somehow. With this in mind, he sighed gruffly as he knocked three times on the door. There was silence for a few moments, and just as the man was about to knock again, a young boy's voice from inside yelled that he was coming. The man dropped his hand and waited. Finally, the door was pushed open.

"Yeah, what is it-" the boy paused upon getting a good look at his visitor.

"Se…Sesshomaru-sama?"

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed. "Are you going to let this Sesshomaru in, boy?" he asked coolly.

The boy gulped before opening the door all the way and taking a step back. "P-please come in…"

Sesshomaru gave a brisk nod as he stepped inside the house.

"Could I get you anything?" The boy asked nervously.

Sesshomaru shook his head. "No. I came here to talk, Kohaku. That is all."

Kohaku nodded. "Yes, sir. What do you need?"

Sesshomaru sighed before continuing. "I am afraid that, due to work, I am going to have to be away from the house for a while." He paused, taking in Kohaku's inquisitive look. "This means that Rin will be alone in the house."

Kohaku's eyes widened. Rin? That's right…Rin had mentioned that she was staying in the house of one of the school's alumnus, but really now…Sesshomaru's? What did she see in the guy? "Why are you telling me this?" Kohaku asked.

Sesshomaru sighed again, but he didn't reply.

Kohaku thought he got the hint. "Is this job…is it dangerous?"

Sesshomaru nodded. "I am afraid I am going to be on a little hunt for what appears to be a very deceptive and very powerful murderer. He has already targeted someone I know, and…" Sesshomaru paused, not quite sure of how to phrase his next words.

"You're worried that the guy might go after Rin." Kohaku continued.

Sesshomaru winced a little, hating the idea of feeling a typical human emotion. "This Sesshomaru does not get worried." The youkai snapped.

Kohaku nodded, a little skeptical. "Right, of course. Forgive me." He muttered.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes. "I am merely concerned. It is an entirely different thing."

At this, Kohaku fought the urge to scoff or roll his eyes. _Completely different. Right._ He thought. "Forgive me, but I have to ask again: why does this apply to me?"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes even further, as if that was even possible, before he bent down, staring directly into Kohaku's eyes. "I know that currently, you live alone and I know that this house will not miss you if you are gone for a while. I also know that Rin would not be unhappy to have you stay at my mansion for a while. But do not get me wrong boy; if anything happens either between you two or to Rin in general, I swear on my father's grave that I will slice you apart and will not hesitate a moment to hunt you down if you run. Do you understand?" Sesshomaru's remaining hand pulsed with a green glow until poisonous fumes surrounded it.

Kohaku gulped. The infamous Poison Claw. He did not look away from the youkai, though. "I understand. I will make sure Rin is safe, Sesshomaru-sama."

Sesshomaru nodded as he stood back up, and began to exit the house.

"Don't worry!" Kohaku called after him. "I promise to protect her."

Sesshomaru turned and glared at the boy in response before turning around with flourish, intent on a quick exit.

After the door slammed shut, the youkai growled. _Worrying is a weakness_. He thought angrily as he continued walking. Nonetheless, he fought between "concern" for the young girl at his mansion as well as relief that she would not be alone. If you could call that pathetic human boy company, that is.

**:o0o:**

"And then, in 1962…"

Kagome groaned, drumming her fingers on her desk. This was stupid. Why should she be forced to go to school when she had an evil mission to complete? Then again, both people she was supposed to be watching for the evil mission were at school with her, so…she really had no excuse. Besides the whole "lost memories" thing, of course.

She narrowed her eyes, pausing the finger-drumming. Lost memories, huh? What a weird thought. She couldn't remember a single thing about the girl she used to be. She didn't remember any of her "friends". She didn't know why the girl with the brown hair was always smacking the guy who claimed to be from a religious background, she didn't know why the other girl, Ayame, she had learned, was always staring at the wolf youkai, who was currently sitting in front of Kagome in class, and she didn't even remember her mother, or rather, the woman whom Kagome had been informed was her mother. She didn't remember her own sister. But most frustratingly of all, Kagome didn't remember Inuyasha.

_Inuyasha…_Kagome thought to herself as she stole a sideways glance at the hanyou. He was scribbling something on his desk. Clearly paying absolute attention to the teacher. Kagome couldn't help but smile. There was something about the hanyou…the way his eyes glistened with worry over her, the way his hair shone in the sunlight, the way his cute puppy ears made his pouting face look even more adorable. Kagome's heart stopped when he looked up, noticing her stare.

"_I've seen the way you look at me in class."_

Kagome gulped, ready to defend herself. If she had been staring…it was because he was in the way…of…the window! Yes! The window!

"_Okay, first of all, if I was staring at you, it was completely accidental. Maybe I was spacing out. Maybe I was trying to look out the window and you were in my way. I don't know. Either way, I was not intentionally staring."_

But all the hanyou did was grin at her, not accusing her of anything at all. Kagome felt her heart skip a beat. He was so…

So…

Kagome mentally chastised herself as she whipped back around, facing the front of the room again. What the hell was wrong with her? She had an evil mission to complete! She could not, absolutely could not, be distracted by _boys_ of all things. Even if they were the most handsome creature to ever grace the planet…

"_**That's right girl. This is no time to be drooling over the hanyou."**_

Kagome sighed. Was there ever to be any peace? Nevertheless, she answered Naraku in her mind.

"_Don't you have some small children to terrorize? Or maybe some babies to steal candy from?"_

Kagome could practically hear the demon man cursing at her back in his dark, evil lair, but she chose to ignore it and to try to focus on what the teacher was saying. This proved to be impossible though, as the teacher had left the room and the class was in chaos.

"Wonderful…" Kagome muttered, overhearing one conversation in particular.

"Hey Kouga!" the first voice called from the back of the room. The wolf youkai in front of Kagome turned around.

"What?" the youkai, apparently named Kouga, asked gruffly.

"Come sit back here!" the voice responded.

Kouga narrowed his eyes. "Don't be stupid you moron. Not only are there no seats back there, but I'm close to my darling Kagome up here."

Kagome sighed. Oh yeah. She had almost forgotten that the wolf was madly in love with her. What a thing to forget. Hah…although, it wouldn't be so strange, considering that she had forgotten her entire life up until the previous day.

"She's not your darling, you damn wolf." Inuyasha snarled. Kagome, against her will, felt heat rush to her cheeks. _No, no, no!_ she hissed internally. _Stop thinking about him!_

"Oh, yeah?" Kouga growled.

"Hold on you two!" it was the voice from the back again, "If someone switches with Kouga, he can come back here and stare at Kagome!" Bursts of laughter came from the back of the room, and Kagome groaned, closing her eyes. _Kill me now…_

"_**I would love to, believe me, but unfortunately it would do me no good. Besides giving me the satisfaction of ending your life myself, of course."**_

"_Shut up, Shadow-Man."_

"Um, I'll switch with you, Kouga. The boys have a point, I guess." Kagome opened her eyes, recognizing the voice. _Ayame?_ Kagome thought turning to see the red-haired girl, already standing, waiting to switch. Why would she do that? It was obvious she liked Kouga, so…

Kagome was desperately trying to form a plan. She hoped her previous self had been a good strategist and maybe she still held on to that, and finally, a plan formed. It wasn't that great of a plan, and she'd probably hurt a lot of people, but she didn't want the wolf-demon to move. He was pretty sweet after all, and although he wasn't quite her type (reference to either episode 36 or 37. Hahahahahah!), she wouldn't mind if her plan worked.

A small voice, her subconscious, maybe, warned her that she would not only hurt Inuyasha, but Ayame as well.

She really didn't want the chatty red-head in front of her. That would completely ruin her day.

Subconscious reminded her that Ayame was one of her best friends.

Had been one of her best friends. Now that Kagome was a completely different person, she didn't have to worry about hurting Ayame and Inuyasha. After all, she was evil, right? And besides, she was supposed to be _forgetting_ about Inuyasha. Wasn't that what Shadow-Man wanted?

Subconscious reminded her that her plan would have serious consequences.

Kouga was standing up to move. She had to make a choice fast.

"I'll give you a kiss to stay." The words were out of Kagome's mouth almost before she could stop them.

Silence filled the room.

Kouga's eyes widened.

Inuyasha's eyes widened.

Ayame's eyes were on the brink of tears.

Everyone else was just dead silent.

"W-what…?" Kouga whispered, turning to face the raven-haired girl sitting in the desk behind him.

"You heard me." Kagome began, fluttering her eyelashes a bit. "I said, I'll give you a kiss to stay."

"Are you…serious?" Kouga asked, poor thing was still too in shock to move.

Kagome giggled. "Why would I joke about something like that?" Kagome asked. Her peripheral vision told her that Ayame was backing up, hurt filling her spring-green eyes. A part deep within her Kagome didn't even know she had clenched in pain at Ayame's face. But it was too late to take it back. This was who she was now, and if that meant she lost the ditzy wolf youkai as a friend, then so be it.

As Kagome stood, intent on giving her full attention to Kouga, she caught a glimpse of Inuyasha. It was him that nearly made her take it all back. His eyes, his usually beautiful and determined golden eyes, were filled with a torrent of emotions Kagome could barely begin to separate. She recognized pain, betrayal, confusion, anger, and for just a fleeting moment, hatred. His lips, his glorious lips that had been holding out a careless grin to her not minutes ago was dormant, caught between a frown and a snarl. His look both frightened and saddened Kagome. She thought that if she shook her head, laughed it off like she had just been kidding and sheesh Kouga, don't take things so seriously that maybe, he would forgive her and even smile at her again. In fact, she was planning on doing just that, when she was caught off-guard.

A jolt erupted through her, beginning at her neck and sending shots of pain throughout the rest of her body. For a moment, she was back in Naraku's lair.

"You idiotic girl." Naraku hissed at her. Kagome's eyes widened, pain still coursing through her. "You are not there to fall in love, you are there to observe! You are not some school-girl who falls in love with cheeky idiots, especially not cheeky half-breed idiots. You will not think of Inuyasha in that way again, do I make myself clear?"

Kagome whimpered as the shots of pain intensified. "I…I understand…" she gasped,

tears blurring her vision. "Please…please make…make it stop…" she begged.

Naraku smirked. "Not until you have learned a good lesson. Now go!"

Kagome gasped as she realized that she was back in the classroom. Everyone was staring at her, and Kagome saw that she had completely keeled over, leaning on and clutching her desk like it was her life support. The pain was gripping her so intensely. It was wrapping itself around her lungs, squeezing them so tight she could barely breathe. It was playing tricks with her eyes, causing her vision to either flash with odd colors or blur her surroundings or black out completely. It was torturing her mind, shooting out painful thoughts of Kikyou and Inuyasha…Kikyou and Inuyasha…Kikyou and Inuyasha…

But most of all, it had a great hold on her neck. Constricting it and forcing her voice out in gasps and whimpers. It wouldn't go away...none of it would…

"Kagome!"

Someone was crying her name…

"Kagome!"

Desperately, seeming to beg her to hold on…

"Kagome, please!"

But she couldn't do it. Kagome let the pain take hold of her, and soon she was falling into an endless world of black.

**:o0o:**

**AN: Well, how's that for a cliffhanger? I hope that whole thing wasn't that hard to follow…I was trying to be really careful to describe what was happening, but if you got confused and you want me to know, you have to review. Hah. **

**Dramatic chapter. Seriously dramatic. By the way, if the whole Kagome-feeling-the-most-pain-at-her-neck-thing confused you, I wouldn't be surprised. If you remember correctly though, three shards of Naraku's jewel were placed in Kagome's neck. That's how he has that mind-connection with her. It's also how he was able to send her into the fits of pain thing, and how he was able to make her believe she was at his lair with him. She was just thinking that she was. The mind is a scary place. **

**Especially if Naraku is in there. Bleah…**

**Anyway, next chapter…ehhhh…I have no clue. I'll try to update as soon as possible, but I honestly don't have much of a clue of what to write next…I mean, I kind of have an idea, but…we'll see what happens.**

**Oh yeah, we still have no idea what the gifts are. Sheesh…I forget to add them, every single chapter…**

**Please review? Please? It might make me update faster! So…please? *puppydog eyes***

**See ya later alligators!**

**~August**


	21. Chapter 18: Why?

**AN: Ughbdotignhoeinmrgob…I like how all of my AN's start out that way. Anyhoo…**

**So believe it or not, I actually did plan to have this updated sooner. But it was laziness and writer's block and stuff that stopped it from happening. Well, that's not all technically, but I'm on spring break, so I thought "what the hell?".**

**Um…not much to say about this upcoming chapter. I am having way too much fun writing about Naraku and Kagome being partners. I would say that I'm making Kagome too OOC, but if you watch the anime/read the manga, she can get awfully snippy. Which I think is fantastic, so I'm putting it to use. I think Naraku's the one whose really OOC. I'm mostly modeling him after Discord, I think, and that is me, yes, admitting that I am a brony. I miss Discord, he was so great…**

**Anyway, music was totally not One Direction. Psh…totally not…totally…not…**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**As much as my inner liar would like to claim ownership, I am subduing her to bring you the truth: The characters ain't mine.**

**CHAPTER 18:**

_(As if Kagome asking Kouga to kiss her wasn't strange enough, Kagome suddenly collapsed in the middle of class! What on earth is going on? Why is Kagome acting so strange? Why is Kikyou acting strange right along with her? _

_And do you remember Kikyou's gifts?_

_Nope?_

_Neither do I…)_

If one ignored the incessant chirping of the birds, the cheery rustling of the trees' leaves, and the joyous chatter of miniature mammals from outside, the nurse's office was relatively quiet. It was the ticking clock that Kagome tried to focus on as she lay in the obnoxiously uncomfortable white bed. Counting down the seconds until she was free should have been plenty to distract herself from the cheery spring world just outside, but alas, those squirrels would just not shut up. _Nevermind the squirrels…_ Kagome thought bitterly, _what about those ridiculous birds?_

But perhaps the real reason Kagome couldn't focus on the clock was not the window and the world beyond, but rather what had just occurred in her last class. She narrowed her eyes as the gripping pain on her neck came back to her yet again. She had misjudged Naraku. He had seemed like a total, if not creepy, pushover in the beginning, but he had proven himself to be a formidable foe, if she chose the wrong path. Though it was plenty warm, Kagome found herself shivering at the memory of being constricted inside that dark, dark room. As if Naraku couldn't get any creepier, suddenly he only enjoyed dark places. _Oh the things I could do with that place if only he would let me…there would be bright colored lights freaking _everywhere.

Kagome sighed and closed her eyes at the silence that followed. Since nearly murdering her in school, Naraku had fallen strangely silent. It was as if he was casting her in time-out to think about what she'd done. The odd thing was, Kagome couldn't understand what had been so bad about it. True, she had been flirting on the job, but successful flirting was a woman spy's best asset at times.

A sudden jolt in her neck made her gasp, and Kagome whimpered, biting her lip to hold in a scream. She tentatively placed a shaky hand to her neck, and her eyes widened when she realized the point of pain was right where one would normally find a pulse. It wasn't that Kagome didn't find a pulse, but…that was just it. There was nothing but pain near the center of her neck, and even when Kagome hunted around her wrist, she could find no sign that she should even be alive.

So why was she?

**:o0o:**

Kohaku took a deep breath. What the hell was he doing? Sure, Sesshomaru had asked him to basically live with Rin for a while, but it seemed too surreal. Part of the boy was sure the inuyoukai was hiding behind a nearby tree, waiting to pounce the moment he and Rin made eye contact.

_Rin…_Kohaku narrowed his eyes at his hand, the same hand that had almost murdered the poor girl. She had been nothing but kind to him, he remembered, but in all honesty, he hadn't seen her since the incident. And neither had she.

Kohaku sighed. He had been standing outside the mansion for practically ten minutes, but so many warnings and concerns stopped him every time he attempted to knock or ring the doorbell. Maybe if he was really lucky, Rin wouldn't think anything of her previous-attempted-murderer living with her until Sesshomaru came back. Kohaku groaned. Rin was forgiving, but he doubted she was _that_ forgiving.

Still…if Rin had forgiven him, maybe they could start over. He did remember that he had loved being with her. And her smile…Kami, it seemed like all that girl did was smile. Not that Kohaku was complaining. It was a brilliant smile, especially if it was aimed at you…

Before Kohaku could wrap up this inner conversation and attempt the doorbell again, the door was flung open and Kohaku found himself face-to-face with what had to be a swamp monster.

"Who's there?" it cackled.

Scratch that. A talking swamp monster.

"Is that…Kohaku?" it questioned in it's scratchy voice.

Scratch that. A talking swamp monster that recognized him.

"Um…I must have the wrong place…sorry…" Kohaku muttered, backing away slowly.

"Wait! Did Sesshomaru-sama send you?"

Kohaku froze. Okay, scratch that. A talking swamp monster that recognized him and knew Sesshomaru.

"How do you…" Kohaku began, but he was cut off by the thing leaping at him, throwing it's appendages around him in a desperate attempt at a hug. Kohaku let loose a noise that was some strange combination of a cry, a disgusted snort, and a squeak.

"I thought he'd forgotten about me!" the thing wailed, and Kohaku felt a twinge of pity, though he had no idea why. "He just left…but, but if he sent you, it means he trusts you again, Kohaku! That's great!"

Kohaku's eyes widened. He grabbed what he was pretty sure were the shoulders of the swamp monster and unattached the thing from himself, holding it out in front of him (with some difficulty). He felt his mouth unhinge as he studied the creature in the sunlight, but it took him a full minute to fully recompose himself and speak. "…Rin?" he whispered.

The thing smiled and Kohaku knew in a second it was the girl. He narrowed his eyes at her appearance. "What the hell happened to you?"

**:o0o:**

"Lord Naraku, forgive me for saying I told you so, but…" Kagura's speech was abruptly cut off by a simple glare from the man on the throne.

"Kagura, forgive me for reminding you that I did indeed warn you both that Kagome was not going to be instantly perfect, as she was fully human at one point, thus that emotions might come back. If it happens again though, I will not hesitate to do more than frighten her." The man growled coolly. There was not a smidgen of gravel in his voice, his tone was always perfectly smooth and rich, a quality that never ceased to freak Kagura out, though she would never admit it.

Kagura opened her mouth to argue that he had done just a tad more than frighten the girl, but she thought better of it. Instead, she turned her attention to her sister's mirror, which reflected the aforementioned girl perfectly. She was looking out of the mirror, as though she were trapped inside it, a frightened look gracing her face as she gasped, a hand on her neck.

On his throne, Naraku smirked. "Ah, so she's made an interesting discovery. Pity. I was hoping to have more time before we unleashed the second stage. Ah well. Nothing lasts forever." Naraku stood and sauntered gracefully over to Kanna. He knelt so he was face-to-face with Kagome, positively grinning as he finished his sentence. "Nothing, with the exception of me."

**:o0o:**

Kagome stood in front of the bathroom mirror, leaning as close to the mirror as she could, one hand on the edge of the counter, stomach pressed against the counter's edge, soaked already from the spilled sink water. She was visibly shaking as she studied herself, tears blurring her vision. She blinked them away, then carefully peeled her right hand away from her neck, using it to wipe her eyes before gasping. Her right hand froze in place as she focused on her neck in the mirror.

Right where the pain was the worst on her neck were three, perfectly-shaped diamond bruises. Those three perfect diamonds were there, where her heartbeat should have been.

Kagome bit her lip again, and despite herself, let a tear spill from her left eye and roll down her cheek before falling, hitting the water already on the counter with a light _plip!_

Kagome whimpered and fell to her knees, letting the rest of the tears fall. It wasn't long before she was all-out bawling, trying to make herself small as possible, rocking back and forth on the bathroom tiles.

Who was she?

Why couldn't she remember anything?

Why couldn't she remember her sister, or her friends, or her mother, or her little brother, or her sister, or the hanyou that she felt so much for?

Why couldn't she remember?

Why?

**:o0o:**

In the center stall, a girl with long, straight dark hair, black as night, stood, her hand on the latch, tears spilling from her own eyes to match her sister's wails.

**:o0o:**

**AN: Phew. So much drama. You know, my plan for this chapter was completely different…but then I got to writing and I was all "eh". So then I changed it completely. **

**But, tis how I roll, apparently. **

**Next chapter, I truly and honestly have no clue. It might be forever from now, it might be in a couple of days. Depends on how I'm feeling. Plus, I seriously have to update my other two stories. So I might put this one to sleep for a bit. Granted, that's where it's been anyway, but that's beside the point…**

**Sheesh, the plotholes keep popping up. I've got to stop making them…**

**By the way, I'm trying as hard as I can to make you guys not hate Kikyou. I'm trying to make it seem like she actually has a soul, which is ironic because she actually literally doesn't…anyway…**

**REVIEW PLEASE. AND THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED LAST CHAPTER. YOU GUYS ROCK. :D**

**Peace!**

**~August**


	22. Chapter 19: Presents

**AN: Oh hi guys...**

**Super sorry. I'm not even trying with the excuses anymore, I'm just sorry.**

**On the plus side, last night my brain was all "HEY YOU KNOW WHAT'S AWESOME? SOLVING ALL THESE PLOTHOLES YOU'VE CREATED!" So huzzah! My writer's block for this story is gone now!**

**Which means that hopefully, updates will come a lot more often. MKXB I'm still a little shaky on, but the next chapter for TGG is almost entirely written out.**

**So...yaaaay!**

**DISCLAIMER: These loverly characters are not my own. But you probably already knew that...**

**CHAPTER 19:**

_(As if things couldn't get any stranger, suddenly it seems that Kagome has no pulse that she can find, and yet she's still alive and kicking. What's that all about?_

_Not only that, but why is Kikyou suddenly semi-okay with Kagome and Inuyasha, when before she was out to get them?_

_Maybe you'll find out._

_If you're super lucky, the gifts might even appear._

_Remember? The gifts?_

_Maybe the chapter title tips you off? ;)_

The school day was almost over, and yet Kagome had not budged from the infirmary bed since returning from her discovery in the bathroom. Now she sat, the thin sheet wrapped around her, knees pulled up to her chest. She was gazing out the window at the birds that had annoyed her so much earlier, although that time seemed like centuries away. She couldn't even really focus on a single thought, her brain felt dead.

Out of habit, she reached up and gently pressed the bruises on her neck. She winced a little, but was almost not surprised to find out that they were not only bruises, but bumps. She sighed, dropped her hand, and let her head fall onto her knees. She didn't want to do this anymore. There were too many questions left unanswered, and she was just supposed to follow this Naraku without any doubt? Any normal person would have rebelled and ran away ages ago.

A pained smile arose on her face.

She wasn't really a normal person though, was she?

_** "Girl. I suspect you are feeling better, yes?"**_

__Kagome groaned. Awesome. Speak of the devil.

_"Not really, Naraku. In fact, I have some questions for you."_

_**"I suspect you do."**_

__Kagome opened her eyes and lifted her head a little. What did that mean?

_**"But they will have to wait. Your friends are coming to see you now. You need to at least act fine."**_

___"What do you mean 'act fine?' How do I act fine when I feel like crap?"_

_**"That is the question."**_

___"And whose fault is it that I feel like crap anyway?"_

_**"If you must play the blame game, remember that it was you who started disobeying my orders and brought this upon yourself. Now, act. It's what you were hired for."**_

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kagome asked out loud, anger surging through her. But she knew she would get no answer. He was gone.

As if on cue, the door slid open and in stepped Miroku and Sango. _Odd..._ Kagome thought, she had this feeling that they should be fighting instead of standing peacefully within five feet of each other and gazing at her with worried looks.

"Um...hey?" Kagome offered to break the silence.

"'Um, hey'? Are you serious? You want to kiss Kouga in the middle of class, break Ayame's heart in the process, then have a FREAKING heart attack, and all you have to show for it is 'um, hey?'" Sango growled suddenly, looking as if she would lunge for Kagome at any second.

Miroku grabbed Sango's wrist to steady her, and Sango froze. Kagome noticed a slight blush creep across her cheeks. "It's okay Sango. I'm sure Kagome has a fine explanation for us. Right?" the monk asked, looking directly at her.

Kagome froze, realizing that she hadn't thought out what to say at this moment. "Um...yeah, totally." She said. Miroku nodded and looked at her expectantly, and Kagome couldn't help but notice his hand remained around Sango's wrist. "It's just...um..." _Crap_, she thought. She had no idea what to do. And of course, Naraku wasn't offering any sort of help whatsoever. Some boss. "I had this...this dream last night." She began, not knowing what else to offer them.

"A dream?" Sango asked, skeptically.

"Y-yeah...um..." Kagome bit her lip. This was going well.

"What kind of dream?" Miroku asked, and Kagome swallowed, hard. The dream she'd really had would be no help to her, it wouldn't offer any sort of excuse for her behavior with Kouga in the classroom. Or her self-proclaimed "panic attack" for that mater.

Suddenly, her eyes widened.

That was it.

She wouldn't tell them the entire truth. She'd just...bend it a little.

"I...I saw Naraku." she whispered.

That got the pair's attention.

"Naraku?" Sango asked.

"Yeah, you know, big creepy guy with the long hair and the Higurashi complex?" she asked.

Miroku smiled, just a little, and Kagome felt herself smiling too. Then it faded as he asked her, "He was in your dream?"

Kagome nodded. "Yeah...I was back at the lair, where he took me when he, um, kidnapped me. And I could hear his voice and it was so...so _vivid_, it...it was terrifying." She ended the last part on a bit of a whimper. Inwardly, she was congratulating herself on her stellar acting so far. Naraku better cut her some slack after this. "And because of that I...I dunno. I haven't felt like myself since then." They had no idea how true _that_ was.

Sango took a step toward her and stopped, noticing Miroku's hand still caught around her wrist. She looked up at the monk and nodded. He reluctantly let go and Sango turned back toward Kagome and was suddenly hugging her friend. Kagome's eyes widened. This was new. "Oh, Kagome..." Sango murmured, "I'm so sorry. It must have been awful for you."

Kagome gulped. "Um, yeah, I mean, you know...whatever..." So much for stellar acting skills.

Sango pulled away and fixed Kagome with a half-playful glare. "That doesn't really excuse the fact that you angered Inuyasha, confused the hell out of Kouga, and ripped Ayame's heart out. You have to explain it to them, too."

Kagome nodded. "Speaking of which, where are they?"

Sango bit her lip and Miroku looked away. "They, um...they didn't really..._want _to see you." Sango explained gently.

Kagome blinked. She was genuinely taken aback. One simple, albeit stupid, question back in the classroom, and she had destroyed her entire social circle. You would think Naraku would've been happy with that.

"Oh..." Kagome began, "sure, yeah...I can understand that."

"Hey, I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Sango asked, smiling. Kagome nodded. The taijiya stood, ruffled Kagome's hair, and walked brusquely through the door. Miroku offered an awkward wave before following her out.

"Sango, wait up!"

"Just because we went to see Kagome together, does not mean we go everywhere together now, got it?"

"But Sango, my dear-"

"Touch me and you die."

Kagome giggled as she listened to the two walking down the hallway. She glanced out the window and, to her surprise, saw Inuyasha. He was holding some kind of rubber bouncy ball and leaning against a tree. Every now and then he would lob it at the school building so it would bounce back to him. He had a vacant expression but he did appear to be waiting for someone. Kagome placed a hand to the window and thought about the dream again, the real dream. The hanyou had seemed so carefree in it, as if his only concern in the world was making Kagome fall for him. She smiled upon the thought. Surely that was the Inuyasha that she had fallen in love with, once upon a time. If only she could remember it. She sighed. At the very least, as long as he was there, she should try to explain to him what had happened, or at least what she had told Miroku and Sango what had happened.

Just as she was about to slide open the window and call to him, another figure crossed the schoolyard. She had long, beautiful black hair that was always perfectly straight and flew behind her in the breeze, turning her into a model. The girl walked up to Inuyasha and, after a few moments of conferring, the two left the schoolyard and were headed together down the sidewalk, destination unknown.

Kagome frowned. Her hand upon the window slowly curled into her fist and her eyes narrowed. Screw him. If he didn't have enough faith in her to not even listen to her explanation and go off with her sister instead, fine. His choice. He would hear it from Miroku eventually anyway, the monk was such a blabbermouth. Kagome tore her gaze away from the window and stood up abruptly from the bed and, without another look back, left the infirmary feeling better than ever.

After all, she had a job to do.

When she reached the lockers, Kagome switched her shoes, grabbed her bag, slammed the locker shut, glanced around, and left the building.

Trailing Kikyou and Inuyasha was going to be no picnic. But what picnic can go on in the rain? Kagome smiled as she glanced to the right, glanced to the left, and then sauntered off in the direction her sister and the hanyou had gone.

**:o0o:**

"Thank you, again, for coming with me Inuyasha." Kikyou smiled as she glanced at him.

Inuyasha shrugged. "No big deal."

"I just, I get nervous around these parts, walking alone, but I have to deliver this for Mom!" Kikyou laughed, a little forced.

Inuyasha shrugged again but remained silent.

Kikyou looked at him, then down at the ground. "Inuyasha, about what happened in class today, with Kagome-"

"Don't wanna talk about it." The hanyou snapped.

"Even so, she has to have an explanation-"

"Don't know, don't care. She can have that lousy wolf if she wants him. I'm done."

Kikyou stopped walking. "You can't mean that."

Inuyasha looked back at her. "What if I do?"

"You don't. After all you went through to finally date her? You can't mean that you just don't care anymore."

Inuyasha looked at Kikyou for a while, then shrugged and continued walking.

Kikyou rolled her eyes. "One of these days, that stubbornness of yours is going to land you in trouble and you won't see me coming to your rescue."

Inuyasha glared at her. "Keh. Wouldn't need you to come to my rescue."

"Mhm. Sure." Kikyou paused when they reached an alleyway. "First stop." she said.

Inuyasha looked at her, then at the alley in front of them. "You're joking."

Kikyou glared at the hanyou. "Listen. I have some things I want you to give to Kagome."

"What?"

"Just hear me out."

"Why can't you give them to her?"

"Because, I'm...it's better if you do it, all right?"

Inuyasha sighed. "Are these the alleged 'presents' you had mentioned back in that diner?"

Kikyou nodded. "Now, here-"

They were interrupted by a loud crash from behind. The couple whipped around to see none other than Kagome, standing behind a fallen metal trash can. Kagome gulped and waved. "Um...hi?"

**:o0o:**

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME KAGOME? AFTER ALL THAT HAPPENED AT SCHOOL TODAY AND NOW THIS HERE AND ALL YOU FUCKING SAY IS 'UM, HI'?" Inuyasha was practically in Kagome's face, screaming at her.

"Okay, I understand that you're angry, calm down!" Kagome winced as she placed her hands in front of her face.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING TELL ME TO BE FUCKING CALM. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU? I MEAN-" his rant was interrupted when Kikyou placed a large beaded necklace over the hanyou's head so it settled around his neck. Inuyasha froze, mid-scream, then turned to Kikyou. "What the hell is this?" he growled, angry and honestly, totally confused.

"It's your first gift, Kagome." Kikyou explained cheerfully.

"Um...what?" Kagome asked, just as surprised and confused as the hanyou.

"Trust me. Now, say something domineering." Kikyou instructed.

Kagome just looked at her sister. "...Excuse me?"

"You know, something domineering." Kikyou explained.

Kagome blinked. "Um, no, no I really don't..."

Kikyou sighed. "Let me help. This thing will control Inuyasha, in a sense, when he gets too...ridiculous."

"EXCUSE ME?" Inuyasha barked.

"All you have to do to activate it is say something domineering. He is part dog. If that helps." Kikyou hinted, smiling.

Kagome blinked. Then, as it dawned on her, an evil grin slowly spread across her face. She then turned to face Inuyasha, looked him right in the eyes, and said, "_Sit, boy._"

In a flash, Inuyasha was thrown, face-down, to the ground.

Kagome and Kikyou blinked, glanced at each other, and burst out laughing.

"That is _brilliant_!" Kagome said between laughs.

Kikyou nodded. "I thought you'd enjoy that."

Inuyasha, with some struggle, pulled his face out of the dirt. "IF YOU TWO ARE QUITE DONE." He yelled.

Kagome looked at him, thought about how much it hurt when she saw him leaving with Kikyou, and said, "Sit, boy!"

After Inuyasha had finally managed to roll out of the hanyou-sized implant that had been created Kikyou walked a little further down the alley, pulled out a lollipop, kneeled down, and held it out in front of her. "Here, boy. I got you a treat and some new friends!"

Kagome and Inuyasha watched as, what appeared to be a baby fox, poked its head out from behind a dumpster, saw the candy, and went racing for it, grabbing it from Kikyou's hand and sucking on it happily. Kikyou smiled. "Hey, Shippou." The fox looked up at her, pouted, and said through the candy, "I'm not a dog, Kikyou."

Kagome and Inuyasha froze, staring at the...thing. "It...it talks?" Kagome stuttered.

Shippou looked at her, pulled the lollipop out of his mouth and grinned. "I'm Shippou! I'm a fox demon!"

Kagome broke out of her trance and couldn't help smiling. She knelt down so she could see him better. "So that's it. Well, hi, I'm Kagome." Kagome stuck out her hand and was surprised when Shippou hugged it. Kagome's eyes widened. She felt a little guilty being so gentle to the kid when she was basically a zombie, but..._but look at him!_ Kagome thought. Her heart was melting, he was just too cute! Kagome let him release her hand and soon she had picked him up herself and was hugging him. "He's so cute!" Kagome squealed.

Kikyou smiled. "Isn't he?"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Please."

Shippou glanced at the hanyou, then at Kagome, who was still holding him. A devilish grin crossed his face. "What? Jealous?" the fox kid asked.

Inuyasha's face went red and he glared at the kid. "WHAT? WHY WOULD I BE JEALOUS OF A BRAT LIKE YOU?"

Kagome glared at the hanyou. "Sit, boy." She snapped. Shippou giggled when the hanyou fell to the floor. "Do you live in this alley?" Kagome asked, concerned.

Shippou nodded. "My parents were killed not too long ago by some thunder demons."

Kagome's eyes widened. "Oh, no..."

Kikyou and Kagome locked eyes. As if on some unspoken cue, they turned to Shippou and said, "You can come stay with us!"

Shippou looked between the sisters. "R-really?"

Kagome nodded. "Of course! I take it Kikyou's already told Mama."

Kikyou smiled. "Mhm. I just wanted to be sure that Kagome here was okay with it."

"Of course I'm okay with it!" Kagome squealed, hugging Shippou once more.

Inuyasha finally managed to pull his face of the ground. "WHAT?! HE CAN'T JUST START LIVING WITH YOU GUYS, I MEAN-"

"Sit, boy." Kagome said without looking back. Inuyasha fell to the ground once more.

Kikyou giggled. "Now, now, don't over abuse the power!"

Kagome batted her eyelashes innocently. "I have no idea what you are insinuating."

Inuyasha, still stuck in the ground, groaned.

The two girls and the fox demon laughed.

Kikyou glanced at the hanyou, finally pulling himself out of the ground, at her sister, and then at Shippou. "Inuyasha, will you walk Kagome home? I have some...um...I still have some stuff to do here."

Inuyasha and Kagome looked at Kikyou skeptically, then at each other, and started glaring. "She won't let me walk her home, she'll just send me slamming into the ground again!"

"As long as you don't say anything stupid, we'll be fine!" Kagome snapped.

"What happened to the sweet girl I used to know?"

Kagome said nothing to this and instead, started walking.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, then glanced back at Kikyou. "You sure you'll be all right?"

Kikyou nodded. "Look after her. And don't say anything stupid."

Inuyasha sighed, defeated, and loped after Kagome.

**:o0o:**

Inside the dark room, the man sat with nothing but the black and purple jewel in front of him. He gazed at it wonderingly, as if it could tell him all the secrets of the world. Maybe it could. He hardly knew, to be honest.

He smiled when the figure stood before him. She thought she had snuck up on him, but no one ever sneaks up on him. Without even gracing her with eye contact, he smirked and said, "Hello, Kikyou."

Kikyou winced, standing before him, as if her name on his lips was poison. "Hello, Naraku."

**:o0o:**

**AN: Wooooooh!**

**OH MY GOSH YOU GUYS. IT'S THE PRESENTS. THEY FINALLY APPEARED! Lol admittedly, I think the whole thing I wrote with Shippou was lazy, but you know what? I'M NOT EVEN REALLY THAT MAD BECAUSE I LITERALLY FINALLY HAVE THE REST OF THE STORY PLANNED OUT YOU GUYS I'M SO EXCITED!**

***ahem* Sorry.**

**So, as a little sneak preview, next chapter, obviously, you will find out why Kikyou and Naraku APPARENTLY know each other, and you will have some AyaKoug! Because it's about time, really. **

**I was re-reading some of the older chapters and wincing continuously because some things don't line up and some things are just crappily written and just...well, as I've said, these stories are written over the course of a few years, so hopefully I'm improving! Let's leave it at that!**

**I sincerely apologize, again, for how long you have all had to wait for this (and for my updates in general). I solemnly swear I am trying to be more consistent. Please look forward to that! When it happens! BECAUSE IT WILL.**

**Anyway. Slightly caffeinated right now. It's fine.**

**See y'all latah!**

**~August**


	23. Chapter 20: Two People in Love

**AN: Hey team! We got kicked out of our house for showings so I figured I'd update now. It's kind of funny because I type really loud and fast and we're in a library AND I FEEL LIKE EVERYONE'S GLARING AT ME BECAUSE IT'S LOUD. **

**It's fine. **

**So, as promised, following will be AyaKoug and plothole solving. And some InuKag because I can't write a chapter without that apparently.**

**No music because I'm in a library AND I'M LOUD.**

**DISCLAIMER: While owning characters may be awesome, not owning characters and writing fanfiction about them is still awesome instead! :D Sort of. If that made sense.**

**CHAPTER 20:**

_(While the presents have finally appeared, it seems that Kikyou and Naraku know each other? I mean, he did try to slice her open, but still...WHAT?!_

_In other news, Ayame is absolutely heartbroken after her supposed best friend attempts to steal the man of her dreams! What will happen there?_

_And finally, we turn to our star-crossed lovers. What does Inuyasha have to say about Kagome's almost-kiss with Kouga?)_

"So glad you could join me, Kikyou. I was beginning to worry we'd never see each other again!" Naraku mused, staring at the girl.

"What did you do to my sister, Naraku?" Kikyou spoke without a waver in her voice. The question was more like a demand or an order in her tone. Naraku kept smirking, however.

"So, you found out about that. That's a shame. I was hoping to have more time with her."

"Answer the question. What did you do to her?"

"Ooh, careful. You know how much I like demanding women." Kikyou glared at Naraku and said nothing. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Narakur sighed. "You used to be so much more fun. A simple spell, nothing more. Your sister's fine."

"Don't lie to me. She is far from fine. She's barely acting like herself. What did you do to her?" Kikyou spat. Her patience was wearing thin.

"I think we should take a moment here to re-assess who's in charge. And who's not." Naraku set an icy cold stare on Kikyou, and though he was smiling, there was nothing welcoming about his expression or his tone. Kikyou gulped and looked away. "That's what I thought. Like I said, your sister's fine. Absolutely nothing to worry about."

Kikyou clenched her fists and said, very quietly, "I want out."

Naraku froze. "What did you say?"

"I said, I want out."

Naraku looked as though he might laugh. "Oh really? Need I remind you that without my help, your sister and that bloody hanyou would be a couple?"

Kikyou said nothing.

Naraku stepped away from his throne and moved closer to the girl. He placed an arm around her shoulders and held another out in front of him, where Kanna had suddenly appeared. Kikyou winced at the contact but remained silent. "Are you sure you can deal with that? What was it, after all, that drove you to me in the first place? Could it have been that your younger sister had _stolen_ the man of your dreams from you and both were acting like it was no big deal? Could it have been you who stumbled in here, drenched from the rain, and ready to sell your soul so you could have him back? Was that you? My memory's a little fuzzy." The image in Kanna's mirror morphed into a wet and shivering Kikyou, standing before a sad, rusted building with her eyes red from crying. "Ah yes, so it was you!" Naraku proclaimed. The image changed into a happy one of Kagome and Inuyasha holding hands and smiling. They were outside, surrounded by trees and the wind and they looked to be laughing. "Remember, my dear, that this is your future if you leave me now." With a snap of his fingers, Kikyou watched Kagome morph into...herself. Now she was standing amidst the trees, holding hands and laughing with Inuyasha. "But this," Naraku began, gently running a hand through Kikyou's hair, "this is what awaits you if you stay. You can't very well leave that behind, now can you? He is the man of your dreams, after all. Isn't he?"

Kikyou stared at the image in the mirror and felt her resolve shatter. She loved her sister. She did. But Inuyasha? She loved him so much it hurt. "Fine." Kikyou murmured.

Naraku smiled and pulled away from the girl. Kanna, too, disappeared into the shadows. "Good girl. Now run along, continue our work."

Kikyou wished she could slap him, but she refrained and, saying nothing, disappeared into the shadows and out of the building.

"Well, that must have pained you." It was Kagura.

Naraku glanced at her. "What do you mean?"

Kagura just looked at him. "Like you don't know."

Naraku just smiled faintly and returned to his throne, grabbing the precious jewel from the armrest. He continued to stare into its depths.

Kagura narrowed her eyes and slunk out of the room. That encounter with Kikyou had pained him, for reasons she wasn't even sure he understood. It was shown not only in the way he hadn't thrown her against a wall for being snarky with her, but also because he hadn't even realized she'd been in the same room the whole time. No one sneaks up on Naraku. And yet, she somehow had.

_That girl really does get to him._ Kagura thought.

**:o0o:**

The walk home so far had been painfully silent. Kagome held Shippou in her arms and stared off in one direction while Inuyasha crossed his arms in front of him and stared off in the other direction. It was a miracle neither of them had crashed into a pole yet.

Finally, able to bear the silence no longer, Inuyasha let out a loud sigh. Kagome was alert now, but said nothing in return. "So..." Inuyasha began rather dramatically, "wanna tell me what today was all about?"

Kagome stole a glance at the hanyou before turning back around. "What do you mean?"

"You know damn well what I mean." Inuyasha snapped.

Kagome winced. Yes, she did. "It was nothing, okay?"

Inuyasha laughed. "Yeah, yeah that was nothing. Telling another guy to kiss you in front of your boyfriend is nothing at all."

"You're not my boyfriend, I can kiss whoever the hell I want."

"The terms of our breakup are weird, so technically we're still kind of dating...I think...but, why did-I mean, I get-" Kagome glanced at Inuyasha, who growled, and finally yelled "WHY DID IT HAVE TO BE THAT DAMN WOLF?!"

Kagome stopped walking. Shippou, still in her arms, sucked on his lollipop and stared at the hanyou with wide eyes. Inuyasha refused to turn around. "Of all the people, Kagome. Of all the people, you picked the one you knew would hurt me the most. I know you're mad as hell at me, and I know I'm a complete idiot sometimes, but still...why him?" It seemed like now, Inuyasha was just talking to himself, but the words still tore at Kagome's heart. She wanted so badly to tell him the truth. Oh, how she wanted to tell him that Naraku had kidnapped her and brainwashed her and set her against him and everyone else she loved, but...she couldn't. Anything she said to Inuyasha would just be heard by Naraku, and then he would not only be after her, but him, too. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if anything happened to him because of her. She may not have remembered anything about why she loved him, but she knew that she did, and she knew if there was a way to protect him, any way at all, she would.

"You are an idiot." Those words from Kagome made Inuyasha turn around. He just stared at her.

"...excuse me?" he finally said.

Kagome smiled. "You are an idiot, and I am mad at you. You're right about that." Kagome stepped forward so she was level with Inuyasha. She dared to meet his eyes, and when she did, she saw that same turmoil of emotions that she had seen earlier, back in the classroom, after the challenge had first left her lips about asking Kouga to stay. It was an awful battle of hurt and love. Kagome knew she had to finish her thought, he had practically poured his heart out to her and she had responded by calling him an idiot, but...

But what could she say? The thought of the lie she had told Sango and Miroku didn't sit right. Inuyasha deserved more than that, he deserved the truth. But that was the one thing she couldn't tell him. So, instead, she turned her whole body to face the hanyou, held his gaze with her own, and responded. "You're right about all of that, but..." she reached up to brush her hair behind her ear, she was actually nervous, "but he's not the one that I love."

In the single moment that followed, a thousand things passed between the couple. The silence went on for so long that finally Shippou cleared his throat and asked, a little impatiently, "Are we going home yet? I'm hungry."

The hanyou and the girl blinked, seemed to realize where they were, promptly blushed, and whipped back around to face forward. They walked for a little bit in awkward silence.

"So, um, why did Kikyou ask you to follow her here anyway?" Kagome asked.

Inuyasha shrugged. "Beats me."

Kagome looked at him. "But you would have just followed her anyway? No questions asked?"

Inuyasha looked at her. "Yeah, probably. So?"

Kagome sighed and looked away. "Nothing, never mind."

"See, this is why we have such a hard time in a relationship. You never talk to me. It's always 'Inuyasha, blah blah blah blah?' and I give you a solid answer and when you seem to have a problem with that, all you say is, 'nothing, never mind.' It's annoying." Inuyasha sighed.

Kagome stopped walking. Shippou gulped and prepared for the explosion.

"I mean, would it kill you to..." Inuyasha trailed off and turned back, noticing Kagome no longer walking. "What?" he asked.

Kagome just looked at him. "Oh, so I'm annoying, am I?"

Inuyasha blinked. "Um...that's not-"

"Sit boy."

And just like that, Inuyasha was sent crashing to the ground yet again. Shippou giggled.

But Kagome wasn't really angry at all. She was smiling as she stepped over the fallen hanyou and continued on her way.

All she could think about was how amazing it was that two people who are really in love can share a million messages in just a single glance. Inuyasha may not know the truth, but he did understand. And that was important, too.

**:o0o:**

Ayame was still at school, sitting curled up beneath a large tree, idly playing with the grass. She was trying not to think too much. Her thoughts all circled back to one thing, and she was desperately trying to forget that.

Her heart hurt. Her head hurt. Her fingers hurt from pulling up all the grass. Everything hurt. She was sure Kagome had a logical explanation, she always did, and yet she couldn't shake the way Kouga had looked at Kagome after she'd said it. It was a moment she'd dreamed about countless times, only with herself in Kagome's place. Kouga looking at her, only at her, and opening his mouth he would say-

"Ayame?"

Ayame jumped at the sound of her name. She looked up and, to her surprise, saw none other than Kouga. "K-Kouga?" she stuttered, not really believing it.

The wolf youkai nodded. "The one and only. What're you doing out here?"

Ayame looked down at the small pile of grass she had pulled up and her now slightly green fingers and shrugged. "Just, um...I didn't want to go home, I guess."

Kouga stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Me too, actually. Mind if I join you?"

Ayame willed her heart to slow the heck down and nodded, scooting over a bit so he could sit next to her. After he had sat down, a peaceful quiet settled over the two. It wasn't awkward, just...nice.

"Can you believe that math assignment?" Kouga finally asked.

Ayame laughed a little. "It's ridiculous."

"I know. We don't actually devote all of our waking hours to math problems, despite what he believes."

"My thoughts exactly! It's like 'um, I have a life!'"

The two laughed for a little bit, and Ayame hadn't even noticed that her heartbeat had slowed. She just felt comfortably at peace. For a moment.

"Hey, you know what I realized?" Kouga asked.

Ayame looked at him. "What?"

"We never hang out. Not you and I, anyway. We usually have that stupid mutt and the rest of the gang with us."

Ayame gulped. "Yeah, I guess that's true."

"So, that settles it. Tomorrow, to celebrate the birth of the weekend, you and I are going to hang out together."

Ayame froze and just looked at the youkai. So much for a slower heartbeat, now it was past a million miles a minute. "W-what?"

"You heard me. Hanging out. You and I? Unless you're busy, or somethin'." Kouga now turned to look at her.

Ayame shook her head vigorously. "No, no, I'm not busy."

"Good!" Kouga noticed Ayame was still staring at him. "Something wrong?"

"Not really...you're just acting a little...weird." Ayame chose her words carefully. She didn't know whether she should be ecstatic or worried.

Kouga forced a laugh. "It's been a weird day."

Ayame turned her head to look back at the ground. She had to know. "Would you have done it?"

"Done what?"

"Kissed her. Kagome."

A harsh silence settled and Ayame didn't want to know anymore. Just then, though, "No." Kouga responded. Ayame turned to face him again. "Not like that. I mean, I like Kagome, I really do, but...not like that. I wouldn't have kissed her like that."

It was weird, what Ayame felt after that. Hearing that Kouga did indeed like Kagome still hurt, and it probably always would. But she was also really happy that he wouldn't have kissed her back there. That was something.

With that, Kouga stood. "So, I'll come by your house tomorrow? Like...noon-ish?"

Ayame snapped back to earth and nodded. "Sure, sounds good. See ya tomorrow!"

Kouga grinned and, with a little wave, took off. He always was a fast runner. Ayame smiled to herself and bent two grass blades into an angular heart. She was hanging out with Kouga tomorrow. She got to say "see ya tomorrow" to him because she _would_. So, with a new smile on her face and a skip in her step, Ayame stood and headed home.

**:o0o:**

**AN: Wheeeee, romantic character development! **

**So, fun little encounter with Naraku back there, eh? Ha ha, oh the things I have in store...**

**And don't worry, any weirdness with Kouga will all be explained next time. If you felt he was being OOC, it's okay. There is a reason for everything. MUWAHAHAHAHAHAAHHA.**

**And there's the InuKag confrontation scene, too. I got a review that mentioned it and while I was planning to have it happen, I wanted the last chapter to end on a dramatic cliffhanger. You know how I loooooooove those.**

**So, with my other stories, MKXB is kind of in a temporary box, and TGG is almost done. Ish. I have a scene I'm having problems with, but it's all good. I think. The next chapter for this one, eh, it depends. I'm hoping within a week, and if we get kicked out of our house more, it might be sooner :P**

**See y'all later!**

**~August**


End file.
